


And In The End

by Jude_Rigby



Series: Beware Of Darkness [10]
Category: Castle (TV 2009)
Genre: Crime, Drama, F/M, Family, Family Bonding, Family Feels, Fourth of July, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-17
Updated: 2021-01-18
Packaged: 2021-03-15 14:28:44
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 22
Words: 179,037
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28814910
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jude_Rigby/pseuds/Jude_Rigby
Summary: A nurse found murdered in a hospital sends Castle and Beckett through the city and into the mountains during the course of their investigation. Betrayal and murder follow, turning the case into a fight for survival as they try to find the killer before more victims turn up; including themselves. Tenth in the Beware of Darkness series. Caskett pairing.
Relationships: Kate Beckett & Richard Castle, Kate Beckett/Richard Castle
Series: Beware Of Darkness [10]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2006014
Kudos: 4





	1. All Is Quiet

**Author's Note:**

> The title of this story is a lyric from the song The End by The Beatles, from their album Abbey Road. (And in case anyone's worried about it, the title does not insinuate that this is the end of the series!) The title of this teaser is a lyric from the song New Year's Day by U2, from their album War.

_Pulling herself out of the rushing water, she saw the dull glint of her gun and grabbed her weapon, holstering it as she pulled the man she'd just shot out of the river, getting his arm out of the branch it was caught in. Breathing hard as the man had at least ninety pounds on her, she checked his vitals, feeling his pulse still beating. Looking around her, she listened, anticipating the sound of gunshots to echo in the clearing, and she found herself tense._

_Hearing the rustle of the leaves on the ground to her left, she whirled around, her gun drawn, but all it was, was a small animal, departing up a tree. Looking down at the man on the bank, she took a few steps forward, and heard the yell of a name in the distance. She waited for it again, and made out the name Lawrence, filing it away in her memory. Walking slowly towards the cabin, she listened for any sounds that would alert her to Lawrence's presence. But reaching another clearing after a cluster of woods, she saw who she assumed was the man, laying on the dirt, staring unseeingly at the night sky._

_It was then she suddenly heard a shouted, "Stay there, I'll shoot!" and she ran toward it, trying not to slip on the muddy ground that was beneath her. But she was too far away, and it took too much time to get back to the cabin. So much so that the shot made her freeze in place, her eyes wide and heart pounding. It took only a moment, and then she was racing, trying to get back._

_The earth was damp below her feet, the pounding of her pursuit of no one muffled to her ears. Her heart was hammering and her breath was erratic, beating to the same rhythm as her heart was making. She could see some kind of light in the distance, and as she put on a final burst of energy she ran through the last of the trees to find she was in the front of the cabin._

_And she was alone._

_In trepidation, she walked to the front door, peering inside but seeing no one. "Carlotta?" she whispered as loudly as she dared to, glancing inside and down the porch as quickly as she could. There was no answer, no noise inside, and she went past the door quickly, turning back to make sure someone hadn't been shadowing her inside._

_But there was nothing other than the darkness inside the main room of the cabin, chairs positioned around the kitchen table as the three of them had left them, waiting. The silence of the abode seemed to be doing the same. Waiting._

_She went to the edge of the house, a pace that should have been far quicker than the miles she felt she had walked. She felt a prickling at the back of her neck that had nothing to do with the night air on her exposed neck or the breeze that suddenly tugged at her wet clothes. The sound was the only thing she could hear, she only saw darkness. She was tense, her gun at the ready as she finally walked the corner, prepared to find the man shouting and possibly shooting._

_There was nothing._

_She heard a sudden grunt of what sounded like pain then, around the next corner, and the noise following quickly afterwards of the debris in the back of the cabin on the forest floor being displaced. Muffled yelling and the meaty sound of a punch to the face reached her as she was running as quietly as she could. She paused at the corner to discern the fight, the numbers as they were stacked against them. But she could only hear a one on one brawl and she braced herself to turn and set things in their favor._

_The click of the safety made everything freeze in the silence of the summer night._

_"You can't… she'll still find you," he said around the corner. "She'll hunt you down and she won't care if you're alive or dead once she sees you."_

_"How will she when she's dead herself?" the other man said through clenched teeth, apparently in pain._

_Taking in those words, Beckett moved, and with her gun aimed, she took in the scene before her yelling, "Drop your weapon now!" voice echoing through the wind that took her words through the woods, racing until it met the river. The rushing water taking the sound and drowning it as everything was quiet there, nothing indicating the standoff beyond the river's banks at the wooden abode, surrounded by the tall, verdant trees._

_A shot. Then the silence of the darkness as the night absorbed the sound, everything returning to as it was and had always been._


	2. Prologue- Late In The Night

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The title of this chapter is from the song I've Got to See You Again which was written by Jesse Harris and sung by Norah Jones, from her album Come Away with Me.

4 Days Earlier

"So the mother's okay now right?" the nurse was asking her companion as they reached the nurse's station.

"Just fine, though I don't know if I would be after giving birth to three, you have to admire her," the other nurse replied.

"Alright, well, I'm going to stop and see these triplets before I head home. I'll see you tomorrow Sheryl," the first nurse said.

"See you Lacey," the second nurse replied with a smile. She watched the woman go, and sat at the desk, finishing up some paperwork from the deliveries she had assisted with that morning. Since no one came in for another delivery, she decided to follow her co-worker's example, and went to the nursery to look in on the babies. She smiled when she saw they were all asleep, but seeing the lone girl out of the four there were made her suddenly frown.

Leaving as quickly as she could to go back to her desk so she could get ready to leave, she was just passing a janitor's closet when she was suddenly pulled inside, letting out a quick squeak of surprise as the door closed once she was inside, plunging her in darkness with her abductor. His lips brushing against her made her relax and smile widely, and she sighed as he drifted back to her ear. "Johnny, why didn't you tell me you were coming?" she asked, starting to turn.

"Like this," her lover said, turning her back to the door. "Remember that game of cards you lost?"

"You want to call that bet in now?" the woman asked, her eyes wide in surprise though her heart was beating eagerly in the anticipation and taboo of the moment.

"Of course," the lover said, pulling the bottom of her smock shirt up.

Sighing as she felt his hands sliding up below her undershirt though they were covered in gloves, the nurse leaned back against her lover, wondering how much she had changed in so short a time; having only known the man a week. But she had found herself quickly needing him after only a few days together. She arched her back as he brushed his lips over the side of her neck, and she raised her chin to give him better access. She felt something cold against her skin, and was about to turn when there was a flash of pain and that was all she knew.

Watching her body crumple to the floor, the man was quiet, waiting for the sound of anyone running to the closet. He straightened his "borrowed" janitor's uniform and straightening the wig and mustache he put on, he left the closet. His posture was relaxed, and he went down the hall to the elevator with a broom in hand to continue his affectation.

Entering the elevator car, the first scream reached his ears, followed by a second and a panicked yell to call the police. The doors closed on his taking his phone out of his pocket; the job was done.


	3. Making All Our Decisions

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The title of this chapter is from the song Bring on the Lucie (Freeda Peeple) by John Lennon, from his album Mind Games.

"Okay, so we should start cooking later today," Castle was saying as he entered his loft with Julia and Alexis in tow. "I'll have to call Kate and see when she's coming home."

"I'm wondering what you have in mind exactly with all this Dad," Alexis said as they put the cloth bags they'd taken to the Farmer's Market onto the kitchen counter. "Thanks Jules," she said to her sister who had handed her the bag that had bread in it. "You got a lot of food."

"It's for the whole week," Castle said. "Also I'm hoping to get my hands on that recipe of her mom's for the strawberries."

"The Belgian waffles?" Alexis asked. When her dad nodded she shook her head saying, "You got raspberries, blueberries-"

"Raspberries that are gold," Julia pointed out.

"True, but I'm hoping her dad can find the recipe today, I'll make it for dinner, and we'll be having breakfast for dinner by the way," Castle said.

"Want to color while we put all this away?" Alexis asked, suddenly wanting to talk to her dad. When the little girl shook her head she then said, "Then why don't you get your stuff to color a picture after you help us?" When Julia had run to Castle's office she said to him, "Are you still uneasy about Tuesday in two weeks?" keeping her voice low as she kept an eye on her sister to see where she was.

"Slightly, you're going to vote right?" Castle asked quickly.

"I am," Alexis assured him, though it wasn't the first time he'd asked her that. "But Dad is it really that big of a problem if you're going to have to stop working with her?"

Taking a deep breath, Castle said, "I feel a little easier knowing I'm with her there. I mean I know I can't really do much unarmed and she can take care of herself but…"

"It gives you peace of mind," Alexis finished for him. At his nod she said, "I'll vote, and cross my fingers Mark Price will end up winning."

"Thank you," Castle said in gratitude. "Okay sweetheart," he said as Julia had come back to them after setting her things on the coffee table. "Want to help us out?"

"Yes please," Julia said eagerly. She looked on as Castle and Alexis set down some of their bags on the floor and she took her camera that he pulled out of one. "Do I put this with my coloring stuff?"

"Go ahead," Castle said. He put away the bread and the things that needed to be in the fridge until she came back. "Okay, first, we put away the vegetables."

Alexis had to smile as she watched Julia standing on tiptoe to set the different items they'd bought after her dad handed them to the little girl. She heard the sound of his phone ringing, and saw that it was on the counter. "Want me to check?" she asked, going to it.

"Go ahead," Castle said, closing the vegetable drawer after tugging the braid in Julia's hair in thanks.

"It's from Beckett," Alexis said, handing it quickly to her dad instead of reading the text for him. She watched him as he looked at the screen and at the frown on his face asked, "What?"

"She needs to head into the Precinct, Gates just called," Castle said, trying to figure out why she didn't need him to go. "I wonder if it's a case."

"On a Sunday?" Alexis asked.

"Yeah… I hope it's not a case, she didn't tell me to join her," Castle said before he glanced at Julia, and did a sort of double take as she suddenly looked serious. "Oh, sweetheart-"

"You have to ask if you have to go too, to help," the little girl said seriously.

"She might not need my help," Castle said simply.

Shaking her head hard, Julia said, "You have to, you need to make sure she's kay and comes home."

A little startled at that, but knowing she couldn't have heard him mentioning why he wanted to work with her mother, Castle didn't say anything but instead said, "Why don't we go to the park down the street, and you can ride your bike?"

"Uh, Dad, it's nearly ninety," Alexis pointed out to him. "Way too hot for that."

"Okay, well, since we've had lunch, why don't we get some ice cream instead?" Castle asked.

"Not until you make sure you don't have to work with Mommy," Julia said stubbornly.

"Better call her," Alexis said, recognizing by the set of her jaw her sister was serious.

"I'll text her," Castle said simply. He swiftly sent her a message, and was surprised when he got one in reply. "She's not working a case, she was just needed down there for something. And she'll be home in an hour or so. Okay?"

"Kay, now we can go," Julia said with a nod. She took Alexis' hand as they left the loft and said, "Would Mommy work without you?"

"She'd have to," Castle said uncomfortably. He then quickly changed the subject to where they were going to have their dessert; wanting to not have to think about that possibility anymore.

A block and a half in the opposite direction of the gelato place Castle and Julia had been to before with Beckett, the trio entered the old fashioned ice cream parlor, breathing out in relief at the air conditioning. With Julia sitting in between them, Castle and Alexis helped her make her choice, and they let her order on her own before they were waiting, watching the soda jerk behind the counter.

"So where are you going with your day camp tomorrow?" Alexis asked. "It's only three days this week isn't it?" she then directed to her dad.

"Two actually, they're leaving the rest of the week free in case families want to go anywhere for vacation for the Fourth," Castle said. "So you might need to watch her."

"That's fine with me," Alexis said. "I feel like I haven't gotten to spend enough time with my sister after going back to my internship; the brief time I did."

"Any reason why you stopped?" Castle asked. "I was pretty surprised when you came home and told Kate and I that you had. And of course your gram was surprised later on when she heard."

"I'd like to see if I can't intern in a psychology ward in a hospital better," Alexis said. "Now that I'm surer of what I want to do."

"I'll cross my fingers you can," Castle said, looking down at Julia who was looking at her reflection in the gleaming glass of the countertop. "Okay?" he asked her, putting a hand on her back.

"Let's think of something to do tomorrow," Alexis said then, knowing they needed to distract her a lot better than they had so far. "When I pick you up from day camp. You want to see if maybe by then it'll be cool enough to fly our kites?"

Shaking her head, Julia said, "No thank you."

Frowning then, as he realized what the little girl was most likely reacting to; Castle picked her up off her chair and put her on his lap. "She'll be okay," he said, wondering why he hadn't said that in the first place.

"Will she?" Julia asked.

"Yeah, I know you're thinking something's wrong with her," Castle said. "But I feel it right here," gesturing to his heart. "That she'll come back. She'll have your grandfather's recipe for your grandmother's waffles, and we'll have a fantastic dinner with her. And I don't think she'd want you to be so sad while she's gone. We have to tell her that we did something besides just sitting around waiting for her to come home to us."

"We came here," Julia pointed out to him.

"And here's our shakes," Castle said as the soda jerk handed them their cups, setting down Alexis' malt in front of her before he left them. He tried to put Julia back, but when she shook her head he let her stay where she was, and he glanced at Alexis.

Getting the message quickly, his daughter started to speak then, asking Julia if she might want to do something the next day. To Alexis' relief and Castle's, the little girl quickly started to respond, asking if they could play a game when they got back to the loft and the rest of their time there was spent planning the remainder of that Sunday afternoon as they drank their desserts.

* * *

"So we are ahead about five points," Castle said, looking at the score sheet he was using for the game they were playing. "But it is a very close game. If she has a good set of letters now, we are in big trouble."

"I don't think so, we have good letters," Julia said, making Alexis and Castle laugh at that. "Why don't we play with the Beatles one?" she then asked him as they waited for Alexis to spell out a word.

"Well, your mom said that we should set that one aside until you're a little bit older," Castle explained, since they were playing with Scrabble Jr. that he and his fiancée had bought for their daughter. "And she's right, because this way you're able to spell more when you play by yourself."

"Okay, so I have quit here," Alexis said. "Which better bring me ahead."

"It does," Castle said, writing her score down. "But we have another chance; our last one Julia, since we don't have any more tiles in the bag."

Studying the tiles they had on the holder in front of them, Julia opened her mouth to suggest a word before the door was unlocked, and opened to reveal her mother. "Mommy!" she shrieked before jumping up from the floor; upsetting the board game and sending the tiles flying through the air.

"Well, I would have asked who won," Beckett said, unable to help smiling as her fiancé and Alexis looked a little startled. "But I take it you weren't done?"

"No, so that game didn't count," Alexis said, starting to pick up tiles as Beckett picked Julia up, hugging her tightly.

Going over to them, Castle suddenly hesitated, knowing something was wrong and realizing there had been a reason Julia had been acting the way she had earlier in the afternoon. "So-" he started to say. When she looked at him a little pleadingly, he quickly shut up, and leaned over, kissing her gently before he pulled away slowly.

"We missed you Mommy," Julia said, watching them.

"I know, I'm sorry I took longer than that hour I said in my text, but I had to look for the recipe with my dad. I have it here though," Beckett said, handing a piece of paper to Castle.

"Alexis," he said then. "We don't have enough milk for these waffles, and then for breakfast tomorrow if we end up having cereal. So can you take Julia for a walk down to the market?"

"Sure, finished picking up the tiles right on time," Alexis said with a slight smile. Though she'd been busy picking up the small wooden tiles, she'd been able to tell by Beckett's tone; and then her dad's; that they needed to discuss something. "Want to come with me Jules? It'll be a quick trip."

"Kay, you'll stay with Castle, Mommy?" Julia asked.

"Of course sweetie," Beckett said, sharing a kiss with her and hugging her tightly. She had to almost struggle with herself to set her down, and she watched as Julia went out with Alexis before turning to him and walking a little stiffly to the couch. "I'm not sure I want to start," she said, sitting down and watching him sit next to her.

"I think it's something you need to tell me, or else I'd tell you you didn't need to start," Castle said. He was a little surprised when she took his hand and said, "What happened at the station, why did you get called in."

"I went to Gates' office, since LT was waiting for me at the elevator when I came in. It was… eerie, everyone that was there in the bull pen was watching me," Beckett said, the moment feeling more real than when it'd actually happened. "But he escorted me there, and I saw why they were staring at me, a Lieutenant from IA was inside."

"Internal Affairs? What the hell do they need to investigate at the Precinct?" Castle said. "And why just you?"

"He; Lieutenant Serrano; was very quick to inform me. The half brother and sister of Rosalyn Wilder, from the Abbey Road Players case," Beckett reminded him. "They had spoken with the NYPD, and they're of the opinion that I shot their sister in cold blood."

"Whoa, wait, why the hell would you do that?" Castle asked, getting a sinking feeling as to why the lieutenant from IA was the one telling her that, and trying to deny it in his tone.

"I don't know, he wouldn't tell me my motive, I guess so I can't find a way to contradict it," Beckett replied. "But they're threatening to sue the NYPD, if there's no investigation into the time I spent in the apartment with her."

"This is ridiculous, you have a clean record… oh god," Castle said, realizing why the IA was seriously looking at her as a killer.

"Yeah, going rogue on an investigation and being suspended doesn't help me," Beckett said with a sigh as she remembered tracking down Maddox. "And it also doesn't help I've been shot before."

"They're taking a psychological route with that," Castle stated instead of saying.

"Pretty much," Beckett said with a nod. "That's what I figured out when he mentioned that to me. I was shot, so I guess they're trying to say that because of that, I'm looking for… revenge or I'm trying to make everyone feel what I did. Never mind I was shot in the chest, not the head." Her voice had become strained and tense as she'd finished speaking, and she jumped up from the couch, going to the windows. Feeling Castle's hand on her shoulder a second later she sighed saying, "I wasn't sure how I wasn't yelling at the lieutenant, I really don't know what other reason I would have to shoot her."

"I'll testify to them if I need to," Castle said earnestly. "To make sure they know you're not the kind of detective to do that and… wait, we were listening in on you, the SWAT team was there."

"They're investigating it, but Serrano let me know that her half siblings are pretty much set in the fact I murdered their sister," Beckett said. "So they need to take everything from as neutral a standpoint as they can. I was questioned, luckily there in the office, and I'll probably have to go to in for a lie detector test at one point."

"Well, there's also Gates, please tell me she stood up for you," Castle said, standing next to her then and watching her.

"She did, and she made sure he knew she'd provide a character statement if it came to that," Beckett said. "So that was a relief. But if I did get charged, Serrano tried to 'console' me by saying it'd only be manslaughter. That's not the worst part though."

"No?" Castle asked, really not looking forward to hearing whatever she had to say.

"After the interview, I was called by Child Services. And apparently they were called by the lawyer the half siblings have hired, informing me that I am under investigation, and could be charged for murdering a woman," Beckett said.

"Don't tell me… they can't take her away," Castle said suddenly. When his fiancée shook her head, tears in her eyes that threatened to fall, he gathered her in his arms and said, "They can't."

"They can, I'm an unsafe mother with the charge, so if I go to court, she'll be taken back and put into foster care," Beckett said. She then pulled away from Castle and said, "And I realized coming back here from my dad's, I could care less about the charges."

"Does your dad know about this?" Castle asked.

"No, I just want us to know for now. I might have to tell Lanie and the boys-" Beckett began.

"Will you be able to work still?" Castle cut in.

"Yes, but I'll essentially be under probation," Beckett replied. "But they'll want to know I'm sure, or Gates will tell them. But I can't be sent to jail Castle; I cannot lose my daughter, or be shut away from you both."

"We'll try to look into this," Castle said. "Go around their case, hopefully we won't really need to worry about another case for now, and we'll refute anything they might accuse you falsely of." He then paused and taking a deep breath said, "If you need a lawyer; or money for one or whatever help you need, I'll provide whatever you ask for Kate."

"I thought you would, but I can't act as if I'm an accused killer," Beckett said. "And for the rest of the night, let's just focus on Julia and Alexis okay? I don't want them to get any inkling anything's wrong, you know how our daughter is."

"She already had an inkling," Castle said quickly. When Beckett looked at him in surprise he quickly explained her behavior earlier and said, "She loves you, and you are her mother. But you're not going to lose her Kate," his voice becoming firm in its tone as he went to her and grabbed her by the upper arms. "You'll be cleared of anything wrong, and Julia will be with us, to be our flower girl at our wedding."

"And ring bearer," Beckett said, a small smile playing on her lips at how sure he sounded, though she knew it was likely a defense mechanism. She heard the door starting to open, so she quickly kissed her fiancé before they turned as their daughters came inside, seeing Alexis carrying a watermelon. "You didn't get one at the Farmer's Market?"

"Those weren't good, but Alexis said this one was," Julia explained, trying to hold up the bag with the milk in it. "She said we should get it for after dinner."

"Here," Castle said, taking the bag. "So now your mom's home, why don't you play Scrabble with her and Alexis?" he said to Julia.

"Yeah, can we?" the little girl said happily to her mother.

Smiling slightly at her fiancé; as she knew he could tell she wanted to spend as much time with their daughter as she could, Beckett turned to Julia and said, "Sure, but I just hope you didn't lose any tile pieces when you jumped up to see me."

"Sorry," Julia giggled, blushing a little. "I want to see you very bad Mommy, I missed you."

"I know, next week I'll go with you to the Farmer's Market though, I promise," Beckett replied. "Want to join us?" she directed to Alexis who'd been leaning against the kitchen counter.

"Sure," the young woman said, trying not to show her suspicion. She'd seen the way her dad and his fiancée had been standing together at the opposite end of the living room, and the fact that nothing had been said about why Beckett had to go into the station had her thinking there was something serious going on. While she hated not being told, she could understand why Beckett wanted to keep it between her and Castle; it made it less real, or less of a threat depending on what was wrong. She sat at the coffee table again; where she'd been sitting earlier; and helped Julia count out the tiles.

Kissing the side of the little girl's head, Beckett smiled when she turned to her and pressed closely against her. "Okay, so, whoever wins this game," she commented once she and Alexis had the board set up. "Gets the first slice of watermelon."

"Ooh, but… what if we both win Mommy?" Julia said. Before anyone could answer; Castle listening in from the kitchen where he was beginning to cook; she continued with, "I know! You can have the first bite of your slice, and then I'll take a bite of mine and then we can all eat."

"Sounds good to me," Castle called. He was relieved to see the smile on Beckett's face as she shook her head at him, and watched as the three started to play.

That time the game took a little longer, as Beckett had Julia try and spell some words, but eventually they were finishing up as Castle came over to them, watching Alexis add up the score.

"And we're at a tie," she said to the others in surprise.

"Then you three get the first three slices," Castle said, amusement in his tone as Julia looked a little flabbergasted at that. "But dinner's ready, so Julia, want to help set the table?"

"We'll set the table," Alexis said, taking her sister's hand and helping her off her mother's lap.

"Good?" Castle asked as Beckett stood up in front of him.

"Yeah," she said, watching the two going around the table. She smiled briefly when she saw the slight concern still in his eyes, and she squeezed his arm once saying softly, "I'll be okay, I'll just focus on everything else but that. You should do the same; you've done really well with beating back any nightmares for a while now."

"Aren't you proud of me?" Castle said. He laughed slightly when she playfully pushed him, and he took her hand to lead her to the set table. "Okay, so Julia," he said as they went to the kitchen to get their food. "You'll have to tell your mom how it went at the Farmer's Market."

"Oh! And I have pictures, lots of pictures," Julia said eagerly. "'Cause it's summer there were lots of flowers and fruits and veggies. I took lots of pictures."

"I guessed you would," Beckett said, helping Julia into her chair after setting down her plate on the table. "Tell me where you went first."

With Julia talking eagerly about what they'd seen in the market, Castle, Beckett and Alexis joined her around the table with their omelets and Belgian waffles. Once everyone was sitting down, the little girl suddenly slid off her chair and ran to Castle's office.

"Be careful," he called to her as they all watched her grabbing her camera from his desk.

"What's the surprise?" Beckett asked as Julia stayed there while she went through her pictures on the camera. "Easy," she said as the little girl started to run back to them.

Walking, but struggling with herself not to run again, Julia quickly climbed up onto her mother's lap and showed her the first in a set of pictures of her on a pony. "See, I rode it all by myself, it wasn't on a merry go round like before. Castle was watching me," she then hurried to add at the end in case her mother would get mad. "But I had the reins and he walked next to me."

"I see in this picture sweetie," Beckett said, kissing her forehead. "And I'm guessing it was fun?"

"It was a little hard to tell at first," Alexis said.

"She must have picked up from you riding very stoically," Castle said. "Though when we rode on Thanksgiving you weren't like that."

"You're forgetting the equestrian events we've watched on TV, you know during the dressage you keep a straight face," Beckett reminded him. "And I'm sure she had fun. Julia?"

"Yeah, but I didn't like the saddle," the little girl replied. "I didn't like the pommel."

"Definitely taking after you," Alexis said quickly with a smile. "But we did that last and then came back here."

"And then we played the game," Julia continued. "And then you came home. I think we would have tied too."

"Probably," Castle said smiling slightly. "So, Kate how-"

"Very close to how my mom made them," Beckett said, having already known what he was going to ask. She smiled at his surprise and said, "I would watch her when she made them Sundays, but she always had an ingredient she put in them I never could figure out. My dad didn't even know about it."

"Then I hope you won't mind if I try and put my own secret ingredient into these next time I make them?" Castle asked.

"Go ahead," Beckett said. "So are we still having that watermelon?"

"It's why I didn't put the rest of the berries out," Castle said, taking her hand and making her get up. He didn't tell her why he dragged her to the kitchen until they were at the counter; the watermelon that had been in the fridge in front of them. "I'll let you go ahead and cut that," he said, handing her a knife.

Glancing at him, since she knew he'd done that in case she still had any frustration left over from that afternoon, Beckett looked over at their daughters, and seeing Alexis was looking at Julia's camera with her, she drew the knife down hard into the fruit, a dull thud coming from it. "Thank you," she said simply, handing the knife back to Castle. She went back to the table and said, "I think you got a good watermelon," to Alexis.

"It sounded good," the young woman said as they turned to her dad.

"Whoa, don't do that at the same time, it's a little freaky," Castle said, pretending to jump.

"Careful!" Julia said worriedly since he was holding the knife.

"I will be," Castle replied absently as he was cutting the slices then. "Our first watermelon of the summer, a little weird, we usually have the first on Memorial Day in the Hamptons, but they didn't sound too good this year," he said as he then walked over with a plate.

"I think this one is," Beckett, watching as Julia ate a big second bite of her slice. "So I'm wondering," she commented to Castle. "Any chance I can read _Hamptons Heat_ since you finally have it finished."

"It's not totally finished," he told her. He saw that Alexis had a matching look of surprise on her face, and quickly said, "I'm adding an epilogue."

"You never put those in," his daughter said.

"I'm trying it out this book, to see if I can," Castle said. "Whether or not it works though is something that needs to be seen."

"At least your agent will stop calling," Beckett commented, picking up another slice of watermelon.

"Yeah, sorry about that, I told her not to call so late again," Castle said. "She was a little angry though, until I told her I just need a little more time because…"

"That's true," Alexis said, looking with him and Beckett to Julia. Luckily the little girl was busy eating, and she said, "So she gave you that time?"

"Just barely," Castle said. "Luckily the last few Nikki Heat books have done well enough I don't need to worry about cranking out the next one."

"You keep telling yourself that, Connelly just put out another book last month, less than a year after his last," Beckett said wryly. "So I'm surprised you got that time."

"I can be persuasive. So, what should we do after dinner? More Scrabble?" he said quickly so he could change the subject, directing the last question to Julia.

Finishing her third slice, Julia took her napkin from Alexis and patted her lips dry, knowing they were all waiting for her reply. Finally though, she said, "No."  
"Wow, she is spending a little too much time with my mother," Castle said, trying not to burst into laughter at how serious Julia had been saying that single word.

"Speaking of which, where is she?" Beckett asked.

"An off Broadway theater let her use their stage for a class; you know how she's been wanting to do that for a while," Alexis said. At Beckett's nod, she continued with, "And they only let her use it on a Sunday, so she's getting as much out of her one day as she can. She'll probably be back late as she wants the whole class to go to dinner together to get more comfortable with her newest students so they can work together better."

"Sounds like she'll be having fun," Beckett said. "Okay Julia, if you don't want to play Scrabble, then what would you like to do. No movies, since we watched two last night."

"I wanna look at my games first before I say," Julia replied simply. She got down off Alexis' lap and took her camera back to Castle's office as the others began to clean up, and she looked in the cabinet where he'd put all her games. All except for a few were now there with how much time she and her mother were spending there, and she had a bigger selection to choose from.

"You know," Beckett said, smiling as Julia looked up at her quickly. "It's still pretty early; we could play two games if you wanted."

"Actually, can I suggest one I got yesterday before you two came over for lunch?" Castle called from the kitchen where he was helping Alexis with the dishes. "I got Michigan rummy, good game to learn her numbers."

"She knows them already Dad," Alexis pointed out.

"Then she won't forget them for first grade," Castle said.

"We'll play that one," Beckett said. "And apparently she doesn't want to forget her numbers either, we're playing dominoes first."

"Are you sure?" Castle asked.

"Yeah, I like the tiles," Julia said, going to the table with her mother. They took the dominoes out of their box, and she mixed them once Beckett had set them all upside down, loving the clicking noise they made. "Are you finished?" she asked eagerly.

Coming over with drinks, Castle and Alexis sat down and they began the game, Beckett helping Julia play though she soon was able to handle the numbers on her own. They only played one game, as Julia remembered hearing the name of the other game Castle said he'd bought; wanting to see what that was.

"So it's a card game," he said as he came back with the box. "And the dealer deals to everyone and then two piles of cards for themselves. They pick one and if they like the cards in it, they can sell the other for chips."

"We might need more chips," Alexis commented, looking at the ones with the game.

"And we want these cards," Beckett said, seeing the spinning table that was the game came with slots that had suits and cards above them. "To win the chips inside them. So when he deals us cards, you want to get those. I'm assuming that's why you have two decks?"

"Pretty much, but this first game will be a practice game," Castle said, smiling at Julia as she turned in her chair to watch him shuffling the deck of cards that he held as Alexis came back with his case of poker chips. "You don't mind using these?"

"As long as we don't use money to back these up, no," Beckett said simply, taking the twenty that Alexis handed to her. After Castle had dealt the cards and decided to keep the deck he'd chosen, she instructed Julia to put a chip in each slot around the game table.

"Alright, so we'll start with the five of clubs, which I have," Castle said. "Does anyone have the six of clubs?"

"She does," Beckett said, nodding for Julia to put the card in the middle of the game table. "So we just go as far as we can?" she asked as Alexis set down the seven.

"Actually, since the eight is here in this deck I discarded, you need to put your lowest red," Castle said to his daughter. The others were soon picking it up, and the game ended with his fiancée getting all her cards onto the table and taking the chips in the kitty slot. "So what do you think?" he asked as he got the cards once he, Alexis and Julia had given Beckett chips for as many cards they still had left.

"It was fun," Julia said, bouncing on her knees on the chair. "Can we play again?"

"One more," Beckett said, looking at her watch. "And then you need to go to bed."

"I'm not going to school," Julia protested as her mother began to shuffle the cards.

"No, but you still don't want to be tired when doing…" Alexis began.

"They're going to the Met," Castle supplied. "And they'll be having a special tour through it actually."

"Yeah, I can't wait, Mommy, I need to make sure my camera is ready," Julia said quickly.

"I'll set it to charge," Beckett promised her, looking at the deck she'd chosen. "Alright, this one is for sale, does anyone want it?"

When no one offered any chips for it, the game started, Julia putting down the first card. It ended with her winning the game, and getting the most chips.

Sighing, Julia rubbed her cheek and said, "I don't like being tired."

"I know, but it was pretty hot today," Castle said. "Walking around the market must have tired you out."

"When can I stay up like Alexis does?" Julia asked her mother as Beckett helped her get down from the chair.

"When you're older like she is," Beckett replied simply. "Say goodnight to her though, she'll be going to bed later."

Following his fiancée and Julia up the stairs, Castle said, "I gave her a bath this morning."

"Any reason why?" Beckett asked.

"Well, she was eating the last of the blackberries with Alexis before we left, and she decided she'd like to make blackberry paste with them," Castle said. "So she still ate them, she just left a mess on her mouth and hands, and decided to paint with what was left on her arms."

"That would explain the bath," Beckett said, looking at Julia who was smiling a little sheepishly.

"I didn't get my shirt dirty Mommy," the little girl said quickly. "And I ate them like Castle said."

Since he was showing her his phone then, Beckett looked at the screen and shook her head at their daughter, holding up her purple stained hands and arms. "Again, that would explain the bath. Okay, let's get you changed and you're going right to bed because we're a little later tonight."

"The dominoes game took a while," Castle said. "But it was fun tonight."

"Would you have rather gone to Espo's and played Halo?" Beckett asked as she changed Julia into her pajamas.

"They know Sundays I spend with Alexis, who's here…" Castle said, trailing off as she walked into the room then.

"Sorry, but just got an invitation from Edith to go out; Max is working tonight at the coffee shop, and she wants to see a midnight showing of _Rocky Horror Picture Show_ ," Alexis explained, going to her closet, a little breathless running up the stairs.

"Don't they only show that around Halloween?" Beckett asked.

"You've gone?" Castle asked. When his fiancée nodded, he smiled, not really surprised to hear that saying, "Did you dress up then?"

"No," Beckett said simply, shaking her head. "So any reason they're showing the movie now?"

"It's at Columbia, in one of the lecture classrooms," Alexis said. "She took Studies in Film this year; Edith I mean; and she invited our group to join us, she had four tickets."

"Okay, if you're going to stay over at someone's place, just send a text," Castle said.

"Oh, Julia-" Alexis began, having wanted to take her to her day camp the next day.

"It's kay, you can take me Tuesday morning," Julia said simply. She smiled when her sister hurried over to her and kissed her cheek before she went to Castle.

"Bye Dad, love you," Alexis said, kissing his cheek.

"I love you too kiddo, have a great time, and don't go crazy with the props," Castle said, smiling at her. "And have fun with the _Time Warp_."

"I will, bye Beckett, night you guys," Alexis said before she was out the door and they could hear her clattering down the stairs.

"Do you have to be grown up to see that?" Julia asked, looking up at her mother as she helped her lay down.

"You do, since you need to be able to stay up to watch it," Beckett said with a smile as Julia was yawning. She tried not to remember everything that had happened that day, and felt a sudden rush of love for Julia. ' _My daughter_ ,' she thought to herself before she stepped away to let Castle say goodnight to her; to have a moment to compose herself.

Yawning again when Castle leaned over to kiss her forehead, he smiled and told Julia, "I love you sweetheart, goodnight," before they shared a kiss.

"Night," the little girl nodded in response, rubbing at her eye.

"I love you too Julia, sweet dreams," Beckett said, tucking her in and sharing a kiss with her before she stood. She and Castle didn't have to wait long for her to fall asleep, their daughter doing so very shortly after. As they left the closed door behind them, she felt his arm wrapping around her waist. "I'm okay," she reassured him. "Just a little drained from everything earlier and I need to relax a little."

"We'll get through this," Castle said, taking her hand with his. "Together."

"I know, but I'm not worried about the investigation so much as the outcome affecting Julia," Beckett said. "And trying not to worry about things until I absolutely need to."

Nodding in understanding, Castle murmured that he was too before pulling her into his arms. He rubbed her back gently before kissing her temple. "Do you want me to draw the bath for you?"

"That's okay, but hopefully you'll be there when I'm finished," Beckett said, nodding to the room.

"Sure," Castle said simply, trying not to get his hopes up since he'd been doing that for the last several days and he was tired of disappointment. "Take your time."

"I was planning on it," Beckett said with a smile, and they kissed hard before she pulled away and disappeared into the bedroom.

Tempted to follow her, Castle knew she'd been serious about needing to unwind, so he forced himself to his office, waiting for the sound of the water in the tub running. Hearing that, he went into his room, and began to change, glancing every so often over to the doorway, hoping she was enjoying that moment alone before she came out to him. Thinking of that, he hurried to check the doors, making sure each one was securely locked.

* * *

The water was quiet, only the sound of her heartbeat reaching her ears, before Beckett sat up to breathe. The liquid streamed down her skin as she wiped away the water from her eyes, glancing around the room. She'd half expected Castle to be there, watching her, but was a little surprised to see she was alone. Climbing out of the tub after she squeezed the water from her hair, she felt a lot calmer than she'd been getting into the tub. She dried herself off absently, thinking about the next day and what she needed to do at work if they didn't get another case. But her thoughts kept going back to her fiancé, and she finally decided to stop trying to control her thoughts.

Coming into the bedroom, Beckett smiled as she saw the reason why she'd been alone during the entirety of her bath. Castle was asleep on the bed, and she was almost going to grab her pajamas when she noticed something as she realized he had on pajama pants on, but not his shirt. Biting at her lower lip once, she went to his side of the bed quickly to check something, then walked back around to her side. She knew she could have just climbed over him, but wanted to wake him up a different way.

Castle hadn't planned on falling asleep, but he was suddenly awake, coming to the comprehension that someone was fondling him. He looked at his fiancée, hissing as she gently squeezed him before she withdrew her hand. "Why?" he asked, his voice distorted.

"Because, you were already ready," Beckett teased him as he sat up. She wasn't surprised when he grabbed her, and she kissed him deeply before he could reach her lips first. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she felt his hands grabbing the towel that was wrapped around her. When they had to part to breathe, she nuzzled his lips with her own and murmured, "Go ahead."

"This isn't a distraction or anything is it?" Castle asked, reaching for where the ends of the towel were but pausing before he could separate them.

"No, it's been long enough Rick," Beckett said simply before kissing him gently.

"It has," Castle said in relief as he got her towel off of her and tossed it off the bed. "Wait," he said, realizing he was still dressed. He kissed her hard, but quickly, before getting off the bed and getting rid of his pants.

When he rejoined her, Beckett was already lying down, and she was quick to bring him down to her for a kiss before they parted. She wrapped her legs around him, closing her eyes tightly as she could feel how aroused he was, and she murmured, "The last week must have been hell for you."

"It felt like more than a week," Castle said, grunting slightly as her fingers brushed against him. He moved and then slid into her, feeling her fingertips digging into his shoulders that she was holding on to. Shuddering when he was inside of her, he began to move and felt her joining him once she could discern how he was going to be. He was moving to kiss her and saw her slightly startled expression before he took her lips. He guessed his very careful movements were a surprise, and realized she had a point in that expression. After so much time not being with her, he would have thought he'd been taking her as hard as he could. But he felt the need to take his time for some reason, not sure why though. He didn't try to explain it, instead focused on his fiancée as he moved from her lips to her neck.

Feeling his lips around her pulse that was racing by then, Beckett ran her hand over the back of Castle's head, moaning slightly as he tried angling his hips a different way. She was clinging to the back of his neck as tightly as she could when he began to descend to her breasts, and she couldn't help it, arching her back as he took her right nipple with his mouth. He was careful as he began to suck at her, and she tightened the grip of both her legs and arms around him as that set off a sharp bolt of sensation, taking him deeper into her without realizing she was doing that at his next thrust. She bit her lower lip as he was a little rough entering her, and at his glance up at her, she drew him back up to her for a kiss. She parted her lips to his searching tongue, and let out a short cry as he suddenly moved them, sitting up as she hurried to straddle him. Pulling away from the kiss as she had to move then, she was a little startled when he grabbed her hips tightly, looking in between them to watch him.

Moving her himself, Castle was half startled, half not, when she didn't take up the rhythm he was using. He looked up at her, and seeing the intense expression in her eyes, he wrapped his arms around her back as tightly as he could; holding her close as he nearly devoured her lips. Luckily she took over from him, almost rolling her hips around him at first before she began to move, making him groan shortly into her mouth as the sensation of her moving around him was heady in its pleasure. Reaching up to her head, he held onto the back of it, feeling her wet hair sliding underneath his fingers. Pulling back, he looked into her eyes again, leaning down to nibble at her neck as he saw the smile spread across her lips for a moment. "I love you," he said, his voice deep but solemn.

"I love you Castle," Beckett breathed into his ear. She turned her head and ran her tongue along the shell of his ear, feeling him shaking hard once against her. He'd been thrusting with her since they'd changed positions, but that one hard shake was enough for her to notice. Leaning down she bit at his earlobe, sighing slightly as his hands were running down her back at the same time. Finally, she couldn't take it anymore, and she whispered into his ear, hoping he heard her.

Pulling back then, Castle looked up at her in surprise at her begging tone, and saw that she was serious. He couldn't stop himself, kissing her as hard as he could, loving her for not caring how she sounded; apparently just wanting him. When they had managed to pull away from each other, he moved her around onto her back again; as she'd asked; and made love to her carefully, deliberately as they kissed once more. He was very quick though, pressing his lips to hers and just barely lingering before pulling away. He was concentrating more on his movements, trying not to go too fast, controlling himself. After a while, he felt like giving his fiancée more, and he reached in between them; a move done easily since they were going so slowly.

Tensing up for an instant, Beckett dug her nails almost into his back as his fingertips brushed once against her clit, the pleasure adding to the fire centered where they were coupled. She moved her hips to try and get him to touch her again, luckily he soon did, and she breathed out in her relief that he wasn't trying to tease her. That breath slid into a moan as he was rubbing harder against her, and she had to fight with herself to keep from moving too fast against him. Biting on her lower lip to try and use that to focus on, she felt his mouth at her breasts again, drifting kisses all over them as she held onto him tightly. She became a little dazed with the satisfaction that wasn't stopping coming from him, and it wasn't until he moved his fingers from her that she finally lost it. She wasn't sure why it took him reducing the stimulation on her to make her reach her orgasm, but it did, and she relished in it completely as waves of ecstasy seemed to search every corner of her body. She was moving haphazardly, not caring they'd lost whatever rhythm they'd once had, just wanting to feel him with her.

It wasn't very much longer until Castle was reaching the edge, just a bit behind his fiancée. But that didn't really bother him; he just focused on the intense sensations between them that he could feel. When they slowed down, and seemed to finally come to a stop, he was careful not to collapse on her, instead moving to lie next to her, holding her against him as he lay on his side. They were quiet for a moment, before he realized that she was shaking, and a second after that, heard her soft laughter. "What?" he asked in surprise.

"You were that tired you fell asleep waiting for me?" Beckett asked, watching him get up. She smiled when he didn't answer until he was back with her, pulling the sheet up over them. "As hard as you were when I put my hand down your pants…"

"Feel free to do that as much as you want to," Castle said. "And I had to run after Julia a little bit at the Farmer's Market."

"They had those slides?" Beckett asked.

"They did, I let her go on two," Castle said. When she looked at him he said, "Now what?"

"You're going to spoil our daughter Castle," Beckett said, though she wasn't too stern in her tone.

"Hey, Alexis paid for the second slide, there wasn't much I could do," he replied defensively as she pressed close to his chest, both of them on their sides. "Plus you weren't there when they were asking me if she could go on another slide."

"I think they've got you wrapped around their fingers," Beckett said jokingly.

"Well sure," Castle said, his voice more serious. "I love them, so that would happen. But I am careful, when we went to the bakery stalls I did not let Julia get all the cakes and cookies she wanted."

"Good thing," Beckett replied. "Did she want to go on the ponies?"

"She did, but she never asked, I suggested it first," Castle replied. "And she said thank you a number of times like I said, before and after." He then paused before saying, "Something I wanted to ask Kate, about Julia."

"Go ahead," Beckett said in slight confusion.

"Is Julia okay health wise? She's pretty small for her age I noticed," Castle commented.

"She is, but that's because of the first four years of her life," Beckett said simply. "She's starting to grow now, but it might take some time."

"I'll have to take her out to play more often," Castle commented. "Well, if it's not too hot," he finished.

"You should," Beckett said with a smile. "For now, you should get some sleep."

"You okay to sleep?" Castle asked quickly.

"Yes, I am now, but that's not why I initiated things," Beckett said, sitting up to kiss him.

"No, of course not, it's because I'm that good," Castle said. He laughed and grabbed his fiancée's hand when she playfully pushed him, and then pulled her down to him for a kiss.

Sliding her tongue along Castle's once when it entered her mouth, Beckett wasn't surprised when things got a little bit out of control between them, and they had to part to literally gasp for air. "We should stop," she commented.

Groaning in frustration, Castle nodded and said, "Sure, but you ask too much when you ask me that."

"As if I'm not doing the same to myself," Beckett scoffed. But her expression changed to a smile, and she leaned down, kissing her fiancé gently before they parted at the same time. "Get some sleep Castle," she told him before she laid down on her side, feeling him scooting up behind her, his arm around her.

Kissing the back of her head, Castle heard the muffled sounds of the city outside as he and Beckett were quiet, and finally she seemed to relax in his embrace. Her breathing evened out, and he was relieved, since he knew they were both going to need what peace they could get as they faced the next day with the investigation into her negotiation with Wilder hanging over them both.


	4. An End To You

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The title of this chapter is from the song Fire and Rain by James Taylor, from his album Sweet Baby James.

Turning onto her back, Beckett looked over to Castle's side, seeing that it was empty. Reaching over, she felt the sheet was cool to the touch, and wondered how long he'd let her sleep as she sat up to check her phone. A little startled to see that it was nearly seven fifteen, she glanced up as her fiancé opened the closed door and walked into the room after it was shut behind him and said, "Morning, you're up insanely early."

"Morning, and I couldn't sleep," Castle said. When he noticed his fiancée looking at him questioningly, he quickly said, "Not because I'm worrying about that, but just because I couldn't get back to sleep." He handed her a mug before leaving, closing the door behind him again.

Getting up, Beckett threw on a nightgown, and sat back down, sipping at her coffee slowly. She felt more awake, and she found herself glancing at the phone on the nightstand, hoping for a case as a distraction. "Hey sweetie," she said, looking up as she just barely heard Castle calling their daughter's name before she burst into the room. "You're up early today," she told her as she set aside her mug and helped her up onto the bed. "I'm guessing you're still excited to go to the Met?"

"Yeah, I can't wait to see what we go to see," Julia said. "Were you asleep?"

"I was," Beckett said with a smile, kissing her cheek. "But you should have slept a little longer."

"Can't," Julia said simply, squirming on the bed.

"Then should we eat?" Castle asked, at the doorway then.

"We can sit for a little, if we take you too early you'll be waiting at school for everyone to come," Beckett said with a smile as the little girl grew obviously disappointed at what she'd said.

"What if everyone is up too?" Julia asked.

"I doubt that," Castle said, laughter in his voice. "I have to wonder if they're as eager to go as you."

"Celia is," Julia said stubbornly. She watched her mother take a sip from her mug and sighed saying, "What do we do now?"

"Like your mom said, just sit and relax," Castle replied. "Anything you want to do?"

Julia shrugged, and then took Castle's phone that he handed her. With her mother's help she began to play a game he had on there for her, idly listening to them talking.

"So nothing yet?" Castle was asking.

"No, I'm wondering if it'll be a slow day," Beckett said. "I was hoping for a case."

"Me too," Castle said, nodding as he knew what she meant. "Maybe we won't until after we take Julia."

"Are you going too?" the little girl asked, looking up at that.

"I will, I haven't done it yet since you started, so I think it'll be alright if I go," Castle said.

"Mommy?" Julia then asked when they were quiet for a while. When Beckett looked down at her she asked, "When can we go get my dress? For the wedding?"

Knowing that her fiancé was watching her for her answer, Beckett set aside her mug of coffee and when she sat up again she couldn't help laugh at their gazes. "We might go this weekend, I need to see how we feel though," she finally replied.

"There's something more to that though," Castle commented, eyeing her closely.

"There might be," Beckett said simply. She finally stopped teasing him and said with a smile, "Remember how you watched her on Saturday afternoon before I came back here?" At his nod she then continued saying, "I picked up my wedding dress."

"When did you choose it?" Castle asked in surprise as Julia gasped in delight hearing that.

"The day before, in the morning since we only had paperwork from our last case," Beckett said. "And that was when you stayed in to write and Julia was with Alexis and your mother. Speaking of which, where is she? And Alexis?"

"Alexis stayed the night; my mother is in her room. Now before you try to distract me again, where is it?" Castle asked, speaking quickly before he came to his question, slowing down there.

"At Grandpapa's?" Julia suddenly asked, making the two look at her in surprise. She became a little flustered saying, "You went there yesterday, and Castle won't go look there 'cause Grandpapa wouldn't let him."

"What she said," Beckett said in reply with a slight smile as Castle looked at her. She smiled as he frowned for a moment and then sighed before she told him, "You will see it."

"Okay, but I can go with you when you get their dresses right?" Castle asked, nodding to their daughter.

"No," Beckett said firmly though she knew he was only joking about that. She leaned over then and kissed him quickly, a little startled when he grabbed her by the arm, pulling her close to him which was possible since Julia had moved to sit on her knees between them as she'd been talking about her dress. The second kiss was a little deeper, but not too much as they couldn't forget their daughter was there with them. "You'll see what we're all going to wear Castle," she said simply once he'd pulled away from her.

"Yeah, at the wedding," Julia piped up, looking up from the phone when she heard her mother speak.

"There is one thing I need to know, or see," Castle said then. "Any blue on your dress? I need to know for my tie."

Reaching over to her phone, Beckett opened a picture and showed it to him, laughing slightly at his exaggerated disappointed expression. "Did you honestly expect me to take a picture of the dress?" she asked him as she quickly sent the picture to him.

"I was hoping you might forget," Castle commented.

"You're gonna have a tie that color?" Julia asked eagerly seeing her mother's sash. When he nodded she smiled and said, "That's nice. What about me and Alexis?"

"Depends on what you two pick," Beckett said. She saw her fiancé's slightly taken aback look and said, "Remember I told you I was a bridesmaid a number of times, I would have loved some conferencing between me and the brides about my dresses; they could have had more say in it of course; but it was always her choice."

"Usually that's how it goes," Castle said, though he wasn't surprised at her mentality.

"I know; the bride's supposed to be the one everyone pays attention to, but I always thought it didn't matter so much about the dress," Beckett said. "I'd like you to look at me because it's me you're marrying, not because I might have a stunning dress."

"That's how it'll be," Castle said with a nod. "I'll also enjoy you in your dress, but secondary to just you."

"Anyways sweetie," Beckett said, shaking her head, seeing Julia was looking back and forth between them as they'd spoken. "You could have a dress this same color, or you can get a white dress with a sash the same color as mine. But," she said quickly when the little girl opened her mouth to speak. "You need to wait and see what dresses there are before you decide. As for looking for one, again, we'll try this weekend."

"We better go," Castle said, looking at his phone as Julia handed it back to him. "Need to get you dressed and fed for the Met."

Squealing, Julia clambered off the bed, hurrying to the kitchen to choose her cereal, leaving her mother and Castle alone for a moment.

"You went by yourself?" he asked his fiancée gently.

"I did, it was better doing it that way," Beckett said simply as she slipped her robe on while Castle held it open for her. She smiled when he pushed her hair over her left shoulder before kissing at her right collarbone. "But we should go."

"Wait, one thing, we never really discussed what I'd wear, I just said I'd wear a tie, but-" Castle said.

"A suit, what that looks like I'm leaving up to you," Beckett said with a shrug as she turned to him. She saw the thoughtful expression on his face, and kissed him gently on the lips before they headed out into the living room. "Martha, good morning," she said, a little surprised to see Castle's mother helping Julia pour a bowl of cereal.

"Good morning you two. Julia here was just letting me know that you have your dress Kate," Martha said. "I'm glad to hear that as you never know how long it can take to choose the right dress."

"It didn't take long," Beckett said, starting the coffee. "I was lucky to already know what I wanted going into looking around."

"That would help," Martha said. "And you'll be happy to know I already have what I'll wear. Thank goodness you two told us we were going to be at the beach, I had my eye on a dress at Neiman Marcus and snapped it up the day after you told us."

"She works fast," Castle said, handing Julia her bowl with milk in it. "I'm going with them to Julia's school, want to join us?"

"I don't think so, it's a Monday, and I have a class at twelve. Which reminds me, I may not be able to pick her up," Martha told Beckett.

"Alexis will," Castle said, looking at the text on his phone. "She's going back to sleep, but wanted to let you know that, the movie was great and she can't wait to see you at your school Julia."

"Eat sweetie, or you'll be late," Beckett urged the little girl who was squirming at the message to her. She joined Julia at the table and leaned over her after setting her bowl in front of where she'd sit, brushing her sleep tousled hair off her face and kissing her forehead. Sitting down, she watched as Julia eagerly talked between spoons of cereal what she wanted to see at the museum, and ate absently herself, wanting to pay more attention to her daughter, needing that as sustenance far more than the food.

* * *

Watching the five and six year olds line up in pairs, Castle glanced at his fiancée, seeing her waving to their daughter. He smiled as Julia waved back, wishing he could join her closer to the school bus parked along the curb. The lines were soon disappearing into the bus, and he watched Beckett walk back to him. "She'll have a ton of fun over there," he told her, trying to read her emotions then.

"Oh I know, I'll be surprised if she doesn't throw a tantrum with the teachers when they try to leave," Beckett replied in amusement.

"Please, she's really well behaved with people she doesn't know as well as her family," Castle commented with a wry smile on his lips. He was about to speak again when they heard the ringtone for her text messages. "Case?" he asked.

Smiling as he'd been holding up his fingers crossed playfully, Beckett nodded and said, "Yeah at the… maternity ward of Lexington Hospital." She looked up at her fiancé and seeing his expression go somber said, "I don't know who the vic is."

"We better find out, I think I'll forgo coffee, at least until we find out what's going on," Castle said.

Reaching out and squeezing his hand, Beckett took his careful kiss and nodded saying, "Good call, I'll see you there." She took the cab that quickly stopped for her at her gesture, and giving the name of the hospital, glanced back to see Castle walking down the street away from the direction the car was going, to give himself more time before he followed. Turning back, she tried to text Esposito, but got no reply before she reached the hospital. A little startled to see Ryan waiting for her at the entrance to the building, she immediately asked, "Tell me it's not a baby."

"No, I thought you'd be wondering," Ryan said. "Espo's talking to the people who found the body; he's not going to answer his phone now. But is it true?"

"The investigation?" Beckett asked, not surprised when he nodded. "It is, but, I don't really want to think about that until I need to. But what did Gates say about this case?"

"Esposito and I are officially taking point, but we protested and she said what we did at the crime scene needed to be by the book," Ryan replied as they went inside and to the elevators.

"Which means unofficially I can take over," Beckett commented. When he nodded she said, "If you don't mind…?"

"No, we'd prefer it actually," Ryan said simply. When they'd reached the seventh floor he led the way out, and past the nurses' station where there was a clear hallway, only an officer standing guard. "They have the babies further down past where our vic was found so we can't have tape."

"Hey," Castle called out breathlessly behind them suddenly. "Is it a baby, you didn't say if the vic was one in your text Beckett."

"It's not," Ryan answered for her. He led them the last few feet to an open closet door, and he nodded to the blood splattered on the other side of it.

"Her throat was cut," Beckett said simply.

"And while she was standing," Castle commented, noting where the biggest amount of blood was.

"Where's the body?" Beckett asked, looking down the other end of the hall but not seeing any sign of it or the ME.

"She apparently had a pulse still when they found her. Weak but she had one," Esposito said from behind them. He glanced at Beckett, but she was looking into the closet, so he looked at Ryan who shook his head. "They were working on her for about an hour but were unable to save her, Lanie's with her now, down in emergency."

"Alright, I'm guessing you're looking into any security footage?" Beckett asked, turning from the closet.

"I'll go, I was waiting to bring you up to speed," Ryan said.

"Take us to see the body," Beckett said simply to Esposito. "Not much for us to see and CSU is here; we need to get out of the way."

Taking them down to the first floor, Esposito went into a separate room where the doctor and nurse had moved the vic's body to, and said, "She's here."

"Kate-" Lanie said, looking up at his call. Since she was alone in the room, she was about to ask if her friend was okay when she spoke first.

"It's alright, what do you have?" Beckett said quickly.

Watching her to make sure she wasn't trying to deflect, Lanie finally said, "She was slit across her throat, one straight cut from side to side, she bled to death though not quickly. I'll put time of death at about three hours ago."

"Any sign of struggle?" Castle asked, though he already knew the answer.

"Not that I can see, I'll have more of an idea of what happened to her once I get her back to the morgue," Lanie replied. "But from what Esposito told me, there was no sign of one in the closet."

"Can you confirm the killer slit her throat from behind?" Beckett asked.

"I can answer that, since the blood was all along one wall, he did," Esposito said simply.

"Call me if you find anything," Beckett said before motioning to Esposito to leave. As they were walking out, she could hear Castle asking Lanie, "What's going on with Beckett?" "What did the doctor that worked on her have to say?" she asked.

"Simple blood loss, the cut wasn't enough to sever an artery, but it was enough for her to bleed out," Esposito said. "But not too quickly like Lanie said. But it was a miracle they even had that pulse still."

"Okay, what about the people who found her?" Beckett asked.

"All nurses there on the maternity ward, the vic was Sheryl Fuller, and she was a nurse on the nightshift. Around the time they found her body, she should have left at five; when her shift ended; but she never clocked out so something stopped her before she could," Esposito said, looking at his notepad and the notes he'd written down there. "They only looked in the closet as there was a small puddle of blood starting to trail out from under the door."

"And no one saw anything down that hall? I'm assuming because the shift change?" Beckett asked.

"No, there was a nurse in the room with the babies there are already, they change shift directly in that room so the newborns aren't alone. So she didn't see anything, since that closet isn't in view of the big window looking into the nursery," Esposito explained.

"Anyone she's close to?" Castle asked, glancing at Beckett; since he and his fiancée had already talked about needing to make it seem like he was the last to know about the investigation, and not the first.

"The nurse that left that room before her," Esposito said. "Plus another nurse in the ICU ward. We're having Officer Thomas get her to bring her to the station for an interview."

"I'll handle that," Beckett said simply. "Castle and I will," she corrected herself quickly. "Try and see if anyone on any other floors saw anything suspicious, especially the next six down to the lobby, though we're likely going to need to focus on security footage. Castle, let's go." They left the hospital, and as he hailed a cab said, "I almost thought…" she began but couldn't finish saying.

"Me too but it's not luckily, so let's find out who the hell did this only fifty feet from the newborns," Castle said, getting into the cab with her.

* * *

"Mrs. Bay, Ms. Temple, please, have a seat," Beckett said, leading the two nurses into the room. "I'm so sorry for the loss of your friend."

"I couldn't believe it when I heard it," Ms. Temple said, dabbing under her eye with a Kleenex. "Sheryl didn't have an enemy in the world, I don't know how she could, working with babies."

"Were there ever any parents that lost a child in the past that would have blamed her for it?" Castle suggested carefully.

"No," Mrs. Bay said simply. She sighed then and said, "There have been infant deaths but, never when Sheryl was there, she was lucky that way. We used to tease her about it, but she said she always said a quick prayer as soon as she crossed the line between the elevator to the maternity ward floor, that she wouldn't lose a baby that day."

"Was she married, dating?" Beckett asked.

"There was that one guy," Mrs. Bay said, looking at the other woman.

"Yeah, that's right, they were together only a week, but Sheryl was kind of walking on cloud nine as she'd said to me," Ms. Temple said. "They met at an art gallery and started talking, but they weren't dating, that was kind of the weird thing about him."

"A week?" Beckett said.

"Yeah, they were lovers, which seemed really out of character for her, but Sheryl said she was a little powerless with him," Mrs. Bay replied. "And she didn't really mind that though she never liked the idea of jumping into bed with a man at the drop of a hat."

"She wasn't forced into anything was she?" Castle asked.

"No, it was consensual, just really odd for her," Ms. Temple replied.

"Did you know his name, anything about him?" Beckett asked.

"Was he ever at the hospital?" Castle then added.

"No, she was a little afraid of jinxing the relationship… though considering they were just having sex I'm not sure what relationship she was talking about," Mrs. Bay replied. "But we never heard much else about him other than how he was in bed. And I've never seen her with a guy at the hospital; I think she liked to keep her work life and love life separate."

"She's right," Ms. Temple said quickly when Castle and Beckett looked to her for confirmation. "Never saw her with a boyfriend at work, and we never saw this guy."

"Alright, then I'd like to ask you how Sheryl was outside of this relationship. Was she stressed out lately, acting weird?" Beckett asked.

"Yeah, that's right," Ms. Temple said, looking at the other nurse. "Three weeks ago?"

"Oh, right, I was sick, and the day after I came back, Sheryl seemed to be acting really strangely," Mrs. Bay took up. "And she would check the newborns; watch them, more than usual. But I don't think she was looking at them exactly, it was bizarre."

"Did she have any siblings? Maybe they lost a baby around then," Castle said.

"No, she was an only child, and her parents had both passed away a few years back," Ms. Temple said quickly. "I teased her; when Lacey here told me what Sheryl was doing looking at the babies; that maybe she was starting to hear her clock ticking and she wanted a baby. But when I said that she seemed to explode and stalked out of the cafeteria where we were eating lunch at the time."

"I can confirm that, since I was just walking in to join them," Mrs. Bay said. "I talked to Sheryl after that, but she just said she was tired and needed some rest. It was the weekend then, and when she came back Monday night she seemed to be almost back to normal."

"Almost?" Beckett asked.

"Well, she started looking at the computer more often, what she was looking at I never could see," Mrs. Bay replied. "She would always change the screen when I came near. And she never stopped watching the newborns."

"Was there anything in her private life around that time that you might know of that would have made her start to act in this way? Besides her lover?" Beckett asked.

"I'm afraid not, she kept things very quiet around then," Ms. Temple said.

"What night was it that you didn't go into work?" Castle asked Mrs. Bay.

Thinking for a moment, the woman then said, "That would be the thirtieth of May, so nearly a month actually."

"And is anyone else at the hospital; from your same shift who would have worked with Sheryl that night; acting strangely?" Beckett asked.

"Not as far as I know," Mrs. Bay said. "She seems, seemed to be the only one."

"Alright, thank you for your help and if there's anything else you might remember that would help us please contact me," Beckett said, handing the two women her card.

"You might want to talk to her roommate," Ms. Temple said. "She might know more than we do since they lived together."

"What's her name?" Beckett asked.

"Grace Whiting," Mrs. Bay said.

Nodding, Beckett escorted them to the elevator and once they were inside, she turned and went back to her desk telling Castle, "I'll find this roommate and get the boys to bring her in."

"And what'll we do in the meantime?" Castle asked absently as LT set something on her desk.

"Thanks," Beckett said quickly to the officer. "We'll look into our vic," she told her fiancé, holding up the file. She went to her computer, and searched the roommate's name before telling Castle, "She works as a court clerk, hopefully she's not at a trial right now."

Looking on, Castle wasn't too surprised when Beckett was telling whoever was on the other end of the woman's office phone that she needed to speak to her. "Trial?" he asked when she'd hung up.

"Of course," Beckett said, getting her cell phone. "Hey Ryan, I need you and Esposito to head over to the court house, we need to talk to a Grace Whiting, she's the vic's roommate. But she's in a trial right now, and you're going to have to wait for the next recess, whenever that is."

"On it, Beckett, we got some footage, but there's a blind spot in the hall, right at the closet. The hall all the way down in the opposite direction of the room where they have the newborns has no security camera, since the nurse's station is there, and a nurse is required to always be there, but there is a camera in the room," Ryan replied.

"Let me guess, the nurse that was supposed to be at the station was our vic?" Beckett asked, looking at Castle, seeing he seemed to be thinking as he listened.

"Yeah, she was, but the nurses have rounds, down to that room and back through the hall, so it's constantly monitored," Ryan said.

"Okay, well, our vic had a lover, but he was never at the hospital, so we might have to look for someone else that knows that," Beckett said. "Unless our vic told him about her work. But let's wait for the footage and check to see what we get before we cross him off the list. Bring in Ms. Whiting in as soon as you can guys and send me a message when you're on your way." Hanging up, she looked at her fiancé and asked, "What's going through your mind? Or do I hesitate to ask?"

"No, not a crazy theory," Castle said. "What if there was a birth that night, the thirtieth of May that had the vic so unsettled?"

"And what kind of birth would do that to a woman?" Beckett said. When he opened his mouth to speak again she quickly held up her hand and said, "Not _Rosemary's Baby_ , or something else that's not really going to help us forward with this case."

"No, though that would have disturbed everyone that was at the delivery, not just her," Castle said. "Though I wonder why no one else was acting weird…"

"Castle," Beckett said as he seemed to lose himself in his thoughts again.

"Sorry, no, what I was thinking, was what if she helped deliver an illegitimate child that night?" he suggested.

Frowning as she thought that over, Beckett finally nodded slowly and said, "That's possible, so you think the vic was told who the father was, and she was killed for that reason?"

"Possible," Castle echoed her. "Especially if it was the illegitimate child of someone in the mafia."

Taking a deep breath, Beckett shook her head once and said, "I would agree, but why kill the nurse? Why not kill the baby if they're going that far?"

Castle found himself unable to answer and he nodded saying, "It was a theory."

"I know you like salacious cases Castle, but it's a little bit of a reach," Beckett said. "But you do have something about the deliveries that night. It could be she found out something that night after one or something else happened that scared her that much to make her so changed to her friends."

"It has to be a birth," Castle protested. "Why else would she be looking at the newborns so much? And I don't agree with that biological clock idea, because I've never thought seriously about that."

"That's because you're not a woman Castle," Beckett said teasingly.

"And what, you believe in that?" he asked her. When she just gave him a look he held up his hands in a giving up gesture.

"I don't think it was that in our vic's case, not from the reaction she had when her friend joked about it. Alright, we'll try and see if we can look into the deliveries that night, and also if we can get footage from the other hall," Beckett said.

When she went to her phone, Castle picked up the file, looking at her questioningly. When she nodded in response, he opened it and began to read about their vic. He frowned a few times, catching his fiancée's attention, before he was closing the file again. "You want to read?" he asked.

About to answer, Beckett saw the screen of her phone light up, and she picked it up saying, "You'll have to tell me, they're bringing Ms. Whiting."

"Okay, so Sheryl Fuller was thirty, and she went to school at NYU and she was currently trying to get a degree as an OB-GYN," Castle said. "There wasn't much in there about her personal life, which means she was a loner, or she had quick relationships. But there was a charge of harassment with a professor at NYU, a Billy Loftus that ended with him being fired and sent to jail for two years about a decade ago."

Turning to her computer, Beckett typed up the name, but shook her head seeing the man's information saying, "He died six years ago."

"Okay, then there's the fact that she worked at New Amsterdam General for two months before transferring to Lexington," Castle said. "The reason being she was charged with accessory to malpractice."

"She had to have been cleared," Beckett said, looking at the paperwork he handed her. She read quickly, and nodded saying, "It was the doctor, and he committed suicide before he was arrested. Okay, anybody else in her past?"

"Not that I could see," Castle replied. "But the family members of the two men?"

"I'll have Esposito check while we're talking to the roommate," Beckett said. Her phone began to ring then, and she froze in reaching over to pick it up, seeing the number was a familiar one. She opened her mouth to tell Castle who it was, but saw that Esposito was walking over to them, Ryan with a sobbing woman behind him, and she hurriedly stood up before striding over to the break room.

"Yo, Castle, where's she going?" Esposito asked.

"I don't know, she got a call but I didn't recognize the number," Castle said, standing up. "Is the roommate okay?"

"Not really, Ryan's going to get her some water, see if she can calm down a little before you and Beckett talk to her," Esposito said. "You want to get her?"

"And you can't?" Castle said though he was already walking to the break room. He paused in the doorway as his fiancée's voice was loud and he glanced behind him, seeing Esposito and a few other officers were looking over at her.

"No, my daughter- she's my daughter, and you can't just come up to her and talk to her like that," Beckett was saying. "Yes I'm her mother; you're new to my case, so I would suggest you take the time to read about what happened to Julia. If you try and push her by suggesting to her that I am not her mother you could confuse her and… no I'm not making that up! Talk to her psychologist and she'll tell you the same. If you ever try and talk to her again, insinuating that I might be abusing her I will go to the head of Child Services and have-"

Castle stepped into the room, about to go to her before he abruptly stopped himself, when his fiancée suddenly seemed to go rigid in tension, and her mouth opened once to speak though nothing came out. "B-" he started to say.

Waving her hand so he would stop, Beckett said, her voice literally seething though it was quiet, "I am her mother and I always will be; you can't take custody away from me. If you go near her again, I will not stop until you are out of a job, and I will sue Child Services for your harassing my daughter." She hung up then and looked at the two men, about to speak quickly when Esposito beat her to it.

"What do you mean take custody away?" he repeated what she'd said. "You're Julia's mother."

Breathing out heavily, Beckett saw that Ryan was coming up behind them and she motioned for the three to come inside. "Since I could get charged with manslaughter and possibly go to jail, they're trying to prepare me for the fact that I could lose custody of Julia," she explained to them.

"But she's a Beckett, they can't just take her," Ryan said.

"She's not mine biologically," Beckett said simply, though she wasn't unaffected saying that. "And they're not caring at this point that she thinks she is."

"What did they do to her?" Castle asked, trying to control his tone but failing.

Looking at him, Beckett took a moment to reply before saying, "Our case was assigned-"

"What case?" Esposito asked.

"Mine since I'm being investigated," Beckett said. "Apparently they're trying to make sure Julia's safety is the highest priority," her voice slipping into a bitter tone.

"That's ridiculous, they have to know you wouldn't do anything to harm your daughter in any way," Ryan said, sounding angry as his partner had.

"Yes, but remember, I'm only her adoptive mother," Beckett said. "They're making sure Julia's okay, so this new case worker… she went to the Met, took Julia and a camp counselor out of the tour they're on, and spoke to her."

"What the hell did she say?" Castle said.

"I don't know exactly, but all I know is they asked if she was being abused or mistreated and I want to go to her, to see what else she was asked but I can't, the case," Beckett said, nodding to the doorway. "And she's probably still at-" She started to say when her phone began to ring. "It's one of Julia's counselors," she said quickly. "Beckett," she answered in a rush.

Listening, Castle wasn't surprised to hear her saying, "She is? Alright… I'll be there as soon as I can." "Is Julia okay?" he asked once she'd hung up.

"Yes, but I need to see her," Beckett said. "Ryan, talk with the roommate and take Castle with you, since he talked with her friends from work with me and has an idea about what's been going on with our vic lately. He'll know what to ask. Espo, I need to you to start on the footage," Beckett said simply.

When the two had gone Castle said in a low voice, "Tell her I love her too."

Nodding, Beckett only allowed herself to give him a quick smile before she was leaving. She found herself concerned, but knowing that hers and Castle's daughter was only asking to see her she hoped Julia would be okay. She felt a slight sense of relief mixed with that unease, the elevator doors closed on her, sharing a brief smile with her fiancé as their gazes met in that instant.


	5. We've A Long Time Together

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The title of this chapter is from the song Tattoo written by Pete Townshend and performed by The Who, from their album The Who Sell Out.

"Ms. Whiting?" Ryan asked as he and Castle stood at the doorway to the room where the woman was sitting on the couch. "We're wondering if you could talk to us at all now."

"Yes, of course," Whiting said, sniffing once. "I'm sorry I couldn't talk before but… Sheryl was like a sister to me."

"It's understandable, and we're sorry for your loss," Castle said carefully as Ryan nodded to him as they sat down. "We spoke to her co-workers, friends of hers at Lexington and they thought you might be able to tell us more about Sheryl."

"Whatever you want to know I'll do my best to tell you," the woman said, sipping at the water she was still holding.

"Then I'd like to ask about how she was doing around the end of May," Castle said.

"They noticed that too?" Whiting said, looking up at him. At Castle's nod she said, "I did as well, it scared me because she was acting so odd for her. She was falling behind in her studies, and she just barely made it through her classes this semester."

"Did you ask her what was wrong?" Ryan said.

"I did but she was being really secretive, something had her spooked. And it was really hard to do that," Whiting said earnestly. "She was tough; she had to be since she was nearly killed by a drunk driver when she was sixteen. She was in an accident with her parents, luckily they all survived."

"So was it dealing with work, or was it maybe a relationship at the time?" Castle asked.

"No, her work, she wasn't seeing anyone at the time," Whiting said swiftly. "At the time she wasn't dating anyone since she was focusing on school. She was so close to getting her PhD… but now…"

Quiet as the woman sobbed a little, Castle waited until she had composed herself and then said, "So it had to deal with work."

"It did," Whiting said, looking up at him. "But she only did deliveries, so though she never said in detail, I guessed it had to do with a baby. Why she would be so disturbed… I don't know."

Castle nodded in understanding, though at the same time he was trying to figure out what it was about a baby that would cause a woman to be murdered. He then said, "Did she ever talk to you about a recent lover?"

"Yeah, you know about that," Whiting stated, breathing out in her surprise. "Well, she said she met him at a gallery, his name was Johnny, but she never told me much more than that. Though she mentioned they were lovers, I asked why she wasn't in a relationship with him, since this past week she hasn't been in school, so she could indulge in a brief relationship. But she just said they were taking things slowly… she was acting really strange about him, because she would never really think like that. She wasn't the kind of woman that took lovers, she wanted a relationship. So there must have been something about this guy that would have made her think differently."

"And did you ever see him at your apartment?" Ryan asked.

"I did, once," Whiting said, nodding. "The day after they met. Do, do you think he could have killed her?"

"We're not sure," Ryan said honestly. "But we would like to talk to him. Do you think you can sit down with a sketch artist?" At Whiting's nod, he stood up and led the woman out, taking her to the conference room as he asked LT to get the sketch artist.

Castle had followed them out, but instead went to the break room where he quickly threw together some coffee. Sitting at the table, he texted his fiancée, wondering where she was at that point. He was a little startled to see an instant reply, and more so to see that it read, _I'm okay, Mommy is walking me in the art, she'll be back soon to work_. Smiling as he knew Beckett had typed it for their daughter; he felt a little better seeing it since he knew that Julia was okay. In return he put an emoticon of face holding a camera before typing, _Take a ton of pictures and we'll see them tonight, love you sweetheart and tell your mom I love her too_. Pocketing the phone after Julia's; via Beckett; reply of, _I will, thank you_ , he took a sip of coffee, wondering what had happened when his fiancée had reached their daughter at the museum.

* * *

Walking into the Met after paying for admission, Beckett wasn't too surprised to see Julia sitting with one of the counselors, at one of the benches in the lobby. "Julia," she called, since the little girl was sitting with her head bent, her gaze on her folded hands in her lap. "Sweetie," she said, relief rushing through her at the sight of the red spots on her daughter's cheeks, knowing she was angry and not sad or scared. She hurried the rest of the way to her, and picked Julia up, hugging her tightly. "Are you okay?"

"Yes, but Mommy, I had to see you, I'm sorry," Julia apologized immediately. "That lady was mean, and I didn't like what she said about you. And Mommy," she then said in a whisper, tears suddenly flooding into her eyes. "I almost made a boo-boo."

"It's okay," Beckett said, not caring, since she was more concerned with how she was.

"No, but she said you might be not the same, and you might make me scared and be scary to me," Julia said, her lips pressing together in a tight line at that. "And you might hurt me. She gave me a piece of paper and said that I could use that to call on the phone. But I threw it away when she left."

Beckett nodded, and sat down on the only empty bench there was in the hall asking, "What else did she say?"

"She just was saying that but she doesn't know you're a good mommy," Julia said, her tears gone and her cheeks even redder in her anger. "I was mad Mommy, I said that you're the best mommy ever and that you weren't gonna hurt me 'cause you didn't like when I got hurt. It makes you sad. But then I almost said that you and Castle take good care of me," she confessed, biting her lower lip hard.

"It's okay," Beckett said quickly, soothingly to her as she rubbed her back. "You didn't so it worked out. And thank you so much telling her that about me, because I don't want to hurt you, ever." She kissed her forehead and then said, "You're my daughter sweetie," knowing she was saying that to the social worker who wasn't there more than to Julia. "And I love you so much. Castle and I do."

"I know," Julia sighed. "But Mommy," she then said in confusion, looking up at her. "Who was she?"

"I'm having a little trouble at work right now, so they just want to make sure you're okay too," Beckett said. She and Castle had talked about how to tell Julia about what was going on; but only in the vaguest way possible, and only if they had no choice in doing so.

"Oh," Julia said simply. "Kay, but I'm sorry if I got you in trouble 'cause you left now. I-I wanted to see you Mommy, 'cause I thought you were gone."

"No, no," Beckett said soothingly to her, kissing her temple. "I'm here sweetie, and I was with Castle up until now, so you don't need to worry about me."

"Where is he?" Julia asked.

Looking up as the counselor was standing near them, Beckett smiled slightly at the woman and said to her daughter, "He's still at work," her voice low. "He couldn't come with me, but he really wanted to, and he wanted me to tell you that he loves you." She watched as Julia squirmed on her lap and she smiled at the nod of her head. "I think though you need to get back with the tour?" she said, directing the question to the counselor.

"I'm afraid so," the woman said. "And I'm sorry Ms. Beckett, but the woman was from… she had a legitimate ID," she started to say before quickly finishing at Beckett's warning glance.

"It's alright, you did what you were supposed to," Beckett replied simply. "But since I'm here, I'm wondering if I might take my daughter back to where the tour is."

"Of course. Let me just find out where they are right now…" the counselor said before leaving to find an employee.

"I hope you didn't miss much sweetie," Beckett commented.

"No, they went to the armor first, the boys like that," Julia said. "But I hope I don't miss the art from Europe."

"What is the tour about?" Beckett asked then.

"It's from Europe," Julia said. "So I don't think they looked at all the swords and stuff 'cause some are from Asia."

"That's very true," Beckett said with a smile. She saw the counselor coming back and she stood with Julia.

"They're in the European art," the woman said. She smiled at the same time as Beckett when Julia made a disappointed sound and said, "They just got there though, so I think you'll make it for most of the art. You'll be able to find them, since they're a big group."

"Thank you," Beckett said, waiting for the woman to leave them. "Okay, so let's go?" she asked her daughter. She leaned down and shared a kiss with her, hugging her tightly before saying, "I love you so much Julia."

"Love you Mommy, a lot, a lot," Julia replied seriously before they set off for the stairs to the second floor.

As they reached the top, Beckett felt her phone vibrate with a text, and she took it out of her pocket, seeing it was from Castle. She made Julia stop saying, "It's from Castle, he's wondering how you are."

"Tell him I'm kay," Julia said, watching as Beckett texted him back quickly. She was surprised when her mother laughed at the next message and stood on tiptoe, trying to see what he'd said.

"I said that I was taking you through the art, and he sent this," Beckett said, showing her the emoticon. "And it says _take a ton of pictures and we'll see them tonight, love you sweetheart and tell your mom I love her too_ ," she read to her.

"I took pictures before," Julia said with a smile. She waited for her mother to send one last text before she took her hand and they walked through the Medieval art to get to the European art. "You couldn't stay Mommy? Castle could come over and Alexis too and we can go through together," she said as they stood in the first room of the European art to see if they could hear the students in her camp.

"I'm afraid not sweetie, I do have to work," Beckett said. "But you'll be picked up by Alexis and maybe she can take you to the park by Castle's when it starts to cool down." Walking into the fourth room, she could see a group of kids wearing the same powder blue t-shirts that Julia had on as well, and she said, "Okay, there they are. Let me say goodbye now. I'll try and be home as soon as I can, but I need to see how things go alright?"

"Yeah, thank you for coming Mommy," Julia said, hugging her mother since she was kneeling in front of her.

"You're welcome, and to tell you the truth, I was glad to get to come and see you," Beckett said, kissing her temple. She couldn't help but laugh softly at Julia's surprised expression when she pulled back from her and said, "I told you I miss you when I'm at work."

"I know, I'm glad you want to see me so much," Julia said shyly.

"I'm glad you want to see me too. Okay, so have a lot of fun, and try and see if you can find a book when you go to the gift shop okay?" Beckett told her. When Julia nodded she hugged her daughter tightly to her, whispering, "I love you Julia, and I'm so proud of you."

"Me too Mommy, I'm proud of you too," Julia said firmly.

"Why?" Beckett asked with a slight laugh.

"'Cause you help people," Julia said simply. "So you have to go to work now and I'll stay here kay?"  
Trying not to laugh at her daughter's matter of fact tone, Beckett nodded saying, "I will, I'll see you tonight sweetie, I promise."

"Kay, I love you Mommy," Julia said. They shared another kiss, and she then went to where the other counselor for the camp was waiting at the doorway to the next room. She took the woman's hand, and then turned to wave to her mother one last time.

Smiling as she put her hand down after waving back, Beckett then left, and she texted Castle quickly to let him know she was on her way back. She left the museum, taking a cab to the station. As soon as she was off the elevator on the fourth floor, she went over to the hallway where her fiancé had said he'd wait to talk to her. "She's fine," she told him quietly when she saw him.

"So she wasn't really crying," Castle said as they tried to get as far away from bull pen as they could.

"Actually she wasn't at all," Beckett said. "She was more angry than anything else. She was a little disgusted that the case worker had suggested I would hurt her at all. But she nearly told her that you and I took care of her, she was a little upset about that."

"Yeah, I still don't know how she's been able to keep this secret. Especially about the wedding," Castle commented, watching the entrance to the hall they were in to make sure no one was close enough to hear.

"You know how she is making sure we work together," Beckett said. "I think it scares her…" She stopped, finding herself not wanting to finish that thought at all as she realized if he couldn't work with her anymore, they might have a problem explaining that she could to their daughter.

"We'll talk to her," Castle said, knowing how she'd been planning on finishing what she'd started to say and what she'd thought of since he had as well. "If it comes to that, we need to tell her you don't necessarily need me around."

"In a way I do," Beckett said. "Because I know you're going to watch that I won't do anything that might put me in so much danger I won't go home to her."

"That's true," Castle said with a nod. "But we have a little more time."

"I know," Beckett said, thinking how strange it was that she and Castle were dreading time running out until the election, but wanting it to fly by so they could get married. She opened her mouth then to comment on that, when there was a voice at the end of the hall.

"Hey, how's Julia?" Ryan asked, having kept an eye on the hall where he'd known the two were. "Castle fill you in on the interview?"

"Yeah, he did," Beckett said before she then saw Gates coming up behind him.

"Beckett, I'd like to see you at my office," the captain said simply when the three of them were looking at her.

Walking a little slowly behind Ryan and Gates, Castle was able to hurriedly whisper to his fiancée what they had from the interview, and that the sketch was nearly finished. He watched his fiancée in the office in slight concern, hoping that she wasn't in trouble for leaving work in the middle of the investigation.

"Detective Ryan and Mr. Castle informed me of your call from Child Services," Gates said as soon as she had closed the door. "And that your daughter asked to see you."

"Yes sir, that's why I left, but I tried to return as quickly as I could," Beckett said, though that was an outright lie; she'd taken as much time as she could get with her daughter. "But she's alright; just angry at what she was asked."

"I'm wondering though, if I should take you off this case," Gates said. "This added stress of the investigation into the death of Ms. Wilder could affect you."

"It won't sir," Beckett said firmly. "I've been questioned and I'm confident that nothing will be found, since there isn't anything."  
"I believe you," Gates reminded her. "But IA is being thorough, I received a call from Lieutenant Serrano, I'm afraid they want you to take a polygraph test after all. I tried to again tell him that you were an upstanding detective, but it doesn't mean much to the IA."

"I know," Beckett said. "When do they want me to take it?" she asked, hoping it wouldn't be that exact moment.

"Tomorrow morning at nine Detective Beckett on the top floor," Gates said.

"I'll be there," Beckett said with a nod. Since that was basically a dismissal, she left the office and sat at her desk where Castle was waiting, watching her closely. "I have to take a lie detector test."

"You're kidding," he said.

"Kidding about what?" Ryan asked, coming up to them.

"They're going to make her take a lie detector test," Castle said irately.

"I'll pass," Beckett said simply. "Don't worry. Is that the sketch?" she asked, seeing the page in Ryan's hand.

"It is," he said, handing it to her. "He had dark eyes and dark hair."

"Anything else about him?" Beckett asked, standing to put the picture on the murder board.

"Just that he had a tattoo on his neck," Ryan said.

"That'll help, was she able to see what it was of?" Castle asked.

"Not really, only that it was dark, and it looked like something with wings," Ryan said. "Her words not mine."

"Okay, so Esposito's still looking at that footage?" Beckett asked. At Ryan's nod she then said, "If she saw him at their apartment, then we should look at the footage from there, see if there's anything we can get."

"I'll call her building," Ryan said with a nod.

Sitting back down, Beckett saw that she had the report from tech about the vic's phone that had been on her at the time of her death. She was going to start reading when she noticed that Castle was watching her. "I'm alright, I'll pass the test," she said to him again.

"Did Julia ask who that woman who talked her was?" Castle asked, deciding from her tone she didn't really want to be reminded about it.

"I told her the reason we thought of, to explain this investigation," Beckett said.

"No choice?" Castle said.

"No choice," Beckett said with a slight nod. She sighed and then said, "She's worried now, she wanted me to stay with her, and to get you and Alexis to come."

"You have a bond with her you know, more than just a mother-daughter bond, it's a little deeper than just that," Castle commented in a low voice.

"I'm aware of it, but for now, I'd like to focus on this, so I can get home early enough to put her to bed," Beckett said. At Castle's nod, she was able to read the report, not surprised that all the numbers were legitimate, except for one. "He called her using a burner phone," she told her fiancé. "They tried to track it down, but lost the trail after Fairfax, Virginia…"

"That's a hell of a long way from here," Castle said, sitting up straighter hearing that. "I'm getting the feeling more and more that this is a professional hit."

"It could be, and we might be running into a dead end with the lover," Beckett commented.

"Guys, something you need to take a look at," Esposito said suddenly. He waited for Castle, Beckett and Ryan to join him in the room and then said, "That blind spot was an issue, but since you told me about that neck tattoo, I was able to get something," saying the last bit to his partner. "This is about fifteen minutes after the time of death that Lanie gave us."

The footage on the screen showed the security camera pointing at the elevator doors, it took a few seconds, but a man soon appeared, going to the button. It was there that Esposito paused it, and pointed to the man's neck, close to the bottom of his ear lobe which was seen as his long, stringy hair swung back and forth.

"Is there any way you can get that enlarged? And since the quality of this isn't all that good," Beckett said quickly as she noticed the tattoo. "Get it to tech to see if they can clean it up, if we ID this as the lover's tattoo, then he is our killer."

* * *

"So anything from her past that points to Fairfax?" Castle asked, walking over to his fiancée and handing her her coffee mug.

"Not really," Beckett said, thanking him before she took a sip. "The strange thing is, Esposito managed to get a little more about the phone, and it was shipped from Fairfax, but the truck it was in was carjacked. They found it about three days later in a ditch near Atlantic City."

"How long ago was that?" Castle asked.

"About three weeks," Beckett said. "But the local PD I spoke with haven't really been able to get very far into their investigation. The cab was wiped clean and all the merchandise was gone, the back was set on fire and burned a pretty good amount before the Fire Department could put it out."

"Wow, this is basically screaming it was a professional hit," Castle pointed out to her.

"I know, and while I don't like saying it, I'm starting to get the same feeling," Beckett said. "But we're missing the motive still because I'm having my doubts a baby could warrant this."

"What if… she was asked about the baby?" Castle suggested then. "The baby, boy or girl, is from a liaison someone wealthy had and he needs to get rid of it for some reason-"

"But doesn't know where it is," Beckett finished for him. "That would make sense, the mother either is afraid for her life and her child's or she's trying to extort the father. But it's more likely the former," she said, not surprised when Castle nodded in agreement to that. "Unless she needs the money to raise the child." She sat back in her chair, frowning before saying, "I'm hoping that tattoo can be cleared up so we can see it."

"Beckett," Esposito said, holing up a file as he walked over to them.

"That's it?" she asked as he handed it to her.

"It is, tech said they couldn't clean it up any better, but luckily there isn't too much detail," Esposito said as Ryan came over to them from where he'd been watching footage from the vic's building. "I'm just not sure what that is."

"A _claddagh_ ," Castle and Beckett said at the same time as she opened the file to reveal the picture of the tattoo.

"You've seen those?" Ryan said in surprise.

"What the hell is a cla… that?" Esposito said, pointing to the picture.

"Well, it's supposed to be a _claddagh_ ," Castle said.

"It's not," Beckett then said. "The _claddagh_ is a symbol in Ireland, it's usually a ring, and it looks like this except the heart is not supposed to be dripping blood." She glanced at the tattoo of a crowned, bleeding heart, held by two hands, shaking her head. "It's a symbol of love, loyalty and friendship."

"You look into those hoping to get one yourself from a boyfriend?" Esposito asked jokingly.

"I'm half Irish Espo, also my paternal grandmother's wedding ring was a _claddagh_ ring," Beckett replied simply.

"And you Castle?" Ryan asked after he'd nodded to Esposito's look as if to question him if she was right about what she'd said about the meaning of the ring.

"I'm partially Irish too, but she's right about what it means. It's just the bleeding heart is a problem," Castle said. "Unless it's a gang… it is," he started to say, trailing off when he saw the expression on Ryan's face.

"That'll be the West Galway gang," the detective said. "It's a small gang; it was bigger back in the 70's, when more mobsters from that county in Ireland came over here. But there are still a few of them around, and they all have that tattoo."

"In the same place?" Esposito asked.

"They do," Beckett said. When he and Ryan looked at her she said, "When I was still a patrol officer I arrested a member of the gang for a mugging in broad daylight. Very fierce temper and apparently not too happy he was arrested by a woman. But he had that same tattoo, right under his ear. So I'd like you to take a look at the gang now Ryan, since you're familiar with them. And see if anyone might match that sketch, or else has something in their past that might indicate they're knife-happy." When the two men had left she looked at Castle and said, "I thought he'd be more surprised to hear that."

"Was he when you told him?" he asked his fiancée.

"Not really, more than likely because we weren't raised in the culture like I said before," Beckett said.

"So she really had a _claddagh_ ring?" Castle queried.

"Like I told you, but the heart was a sapphire; my grandfather's birthstone," Beckett said.

"You know, silver could still work…" Castle began to say in a low voice.

"We talked about that already," Beckett said simply. "And it won't."

Castle shook his head then as Beckett turned back to the file in front of her, and took the paper she handed him. He wasn't really seeing the list of phone numbers or the marks that his fiancée had made on them of who she wanted to call for more information about their vic. He was recalling the night when they'd last had that conversation, taking the second paper she soon handed to him without saying a word as she studied him for a moment.

* * *

_"So there's a picture I'd like to show you two," Martha said, walking around the couch to face her son and his fiancée._

_"Of what?" Castle asked. He took his mother's phone she was holding out to him, and opened his mouth to speak for a moment before closing it. "Mother, these are very…"_

_"They're interesting rings," Beckett said, trying not to let her dismay at the thick, diamond encrusted wedding bands show. "But Castle and I, while we haven't discussed our bands in detail, have agreed on them being silver."_

_"Oh, well, that's not a problem, they have diamonds on silver bands right here," Martha said simply, starting to take her phone._

_"Actually," Beckett said, as she looked at Castle and saw that he seemed to be trying to think of a way to tell his mother no. "I think you're right, we really should discuss what we need to get. Now is a good time, since they're busy in there," she nodded to his office where Julia and Alexis were playing a word game on Castle's TV._

_"Finally, I thought you two were never going to talk about that," Martha nearly muttered, taking her phone and going to the office._

_"Did you just manipulate us into that?" Castle asked in astonishment as Beckett sat up from where she'd been leaning against him, looking as shocked as he'd felt._

_"I think she did," Beckett replied, shaking her head. She turned to him and smiled saying, "Should we?"_

_"Why not? The idea's been planted in our brains already," Castle said with a shrug, smiling when Beckett pushed at him slightly. He opened a new page of the internet on his tablet they'd been looking at together and then handed it to her. "I picked your ring," he said, glancing at the three diamonds on her left hand. "So why don't you decide where you want to look for our bands."_

_"I think we're in agreement already," Beckett said. "Without having to say a word."_

_"We're that good," Castle said, pretending to nod seriously. He took back the tablet, and opened up the site for Tiffany's and paused before asking, "Where did your mom and dad get their bands?"_

_"Someplace small," Beckett said. "Not Tiffany's, my dad just wanted to get her something special to propose. Not that the bands weren't special, but they weren't exactly rich those days." At her fiancé's unasked question she said, "He borrowed some money from my grandparents for the ring, and paid them back once he was hired at his first firm."_

_"Makes sense," Castle said. "So I guess one thing… wait, now I know why I'm getting a sense of déjà vu looking at these rings. What about this kind," he told her quickly as he typed out on his tablet for a few minutes before showing her a picture. "It's-" he began to say._

_"A claddagh ring, my grandmother's wedding band was that," Beckett said. She smiled a little at Castle's surprise at her knowing that, and said, "She was from Galway, the county where Claddagh is."_

_"Oh, well, what do you think?" he asked hurriedly._

_"Didn't we just tell your mother that we didn't want gold?" Beckett asked._

_"It comes in silver," Castle said simply._

_"And would you be wearing one?" Beckett said. She was immediately able to tell the answer was no, as he hesitated and she leaned over, kissing him gently on the lips. "I love you Castle, and you love me, we're loyal to one another, and we're friends, but I think we'll want a more modern band for ourselves."_

_"Alright," he sighed. He then playfully muttered under his breath, "It would have been romantic."_

_"I can hear you, and you sound eerily like your mom talking that that," Beckett said. She smiled when Castle grimaced and then said, "What I would like is just a plain band. I don't need any diamonds like that band your mom showed us. I have diamonds, I just want simple Castle."_

_"That's kind of what I'd like too," he replied. "What about this?" he asked, turning the tablet to her again._

_"Too square," Beckett said. "I'm thinking of that George Harrison song, Any Road."_

_"There are no edges?" Castle asked, knowing the song well since it was a favorite of Julia's from the album it was on. When his fiancée nodded he went back onto the tablet, looking around a little more before he glanced up at her._

_"What?" Beckett asked, wondering the reason for the look he was giving her._

_Pulling on her hand, Castle soon had her back pressed against his chest, and was holding the tablet in front of her so they could both see it. He scrolled down the page of wedding bands, until he stopped at the same time his fiancée said, "Stop." Opening the page that was of the pair of bands, he waited for her to say he'd picked the wrong one._

_But instead of that, Beckett smiled and turned to him saying, "We found them," kissing him deeply before they were abruptly interrupted._

_"Did you find a ring?" Julia asked, smiling when her mother and Castle looked over to find her, Alexis and Martha in the doorway to the office._

_"We did, but you guys will see it on the wedding day," Castle said, hurriedly closing the page after saving it. He paused and then quickly said, "Anyone up for some hot chocolate?" He was relieved when Alexis offered to make it, and he watched them go to the kitchen before he turned back to Beckett. He leaned over, whispering into her ear, before he pulled back to see her smile before she was leaning in, kissing him tenderly on the lips._

* * *

Looking at Castle, Beckett nearly laughed out loud when he seemed to be a little startled at her gaze and said, "Welcome back. I take it you had a wonderful trip from the way you're coming back to me."

"Yeah, sorry, was thinking about rings in general," Castle said, having to word it that way since a few officers were walking by them.

"I've got something Beckett," Ryan suddenly called. When she and Castle walked over to him at his desk he quickly said, "Searching the known members of the Galway gang, I discovered these two men. Thanks Thomas." He held out the file the officer had handed him, and watched as she began to read.

"A Michael McKee, who is suspected of murdering his girlfriend five months ago, throat slit like our victim. An autopsy showed she was a month pregnant but no charges were ever filed against him because of a lack of evidence," Beckett said. "And Daniel Kennedy, who was arrested for domestic abuse. His wife was found two weeks after his release; two months ago; in a hotel she was hiding in, her throat slit and four months pregnant. Kennedy was suspected, but never charged either. Alright, we have our possible lovers," she said, showing Castle the pictures of the two men; looking a lot like the sketch. "Find them and bring them in."

"Got it, Espo," Ryan called, heading to the elevator. "They hang out at a pub, Sally's Clover, an Irish place on the East End."

"What would be their motive?" Castle said as he and Beckett went back to her desk.

"Two reasons, he had nothing to do with the murder he was suspected of, and for some twisted, convoluted reason is blaming a successful nurse for helping other women bring their babies to term, or she helped one of those women in their short pregnancies and she knew he had killed them," Beckett said. "And considering how violent the deaths of both women were, we need to make sure we don't have a serial killer targeting nurses, doctors or worse, pregnant women."


	6. Lies For Fact

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The title of this chapter is a lyric from the song Substitute written by Pete Townshend and performed by The Who.

"What was that call for?" Castle asked, walking over to Beckett who'd just hung up her phone.

"To confirm the alibi that Ryan got from the roommate," Beckett explained. "And she was at their apartment at the time of the murder, asleep. The building they're at has digital locks that record people going in and out."

"Any fire escapes on the side?" Castle asked.

"No, really, you suspected her?" Beckett asked.

"No, she was pretty broken up, but I just wanted to make sure she wasn't the greatest actress of all time," Castle replied with a shrug. "So we're on pause right now," he said. "Shouldn't the boys have been able to find these guys?"

"Well, if they're separate, they'd be harder to find," Beckett replied. "Though if I'd been allowed to go help them I'm sure we'd be finishing up our interrogations by now."

"They'll find them," Castle said quickly, hearing the frustration in her voice easily. "Until then, why don't we look at what we know of the murder?"

"Fine, nothing else to do at this point," Beckett said shortly, standing. Since she was on a sort of probation, Gates had told her not to apprehend anyone since it was her trying to do that during the Wilder case that had led to the investigation into her actions. She had been upset at that, since she could have easily gone with the boys as witnesses, but the captain had been firm in playing it safe. "So at the time of the shift change, we saw our vic walking down the hall past the camera and into the blind spot," she said, standing at the murder board with her fiancé, pointing to the picture of the nurse just before she went out of sight.

"She was looking at the babies again," Castle said. "Speaking of that, any chance getting a record of the births yet?"

"Not yet, I'll have to check my e-mail again, see if the hospital sent it," Beckett said. She glanced at her computer screen and shook her head, since she had it already on her e-mail so she could see as soon as it had arrived. "And the killer pulls her into the closet as she passes by."

"No one on the floor heard any kind of scream or call for help," Castle picked up for her. "So she knew who it was, because her time of death is about five or seven minutes after she passes under the camera here. I can't see an attacker keeping a woman still in so small a closet. She'd be bound to kick against the door."

"Right, so he probably is kissing her," Beckett said with a nod.

"Probably some heavy petting too," Castle pointed out.

"What is this, the 50's?" Beckett asked him.

"Her smock shirt was ruffled," Castle simply said, reminding her. "And pulled up slightly according to the nurses that found her."  
"I know, so he keeps her calm, until he can pull out the knife and then, it's done," Beckett said. She looked at the picture of the vic and started to say, "I just-" when her phone on her desk rang. Going to it quickly, she spoke with CSU and hanging up the phone a short while later, said to her fiancé, "According to what they had of that man with the broom from the footage; he's about six feet even."

"Aren't McKee and Kennedy shorter?" Castle asked, remembering the information about the two men.

"They are, and from what we saw of the security footage of the killer, he was wearing plain work boots," Beckett said. "With such a slight heel it wouldn't have helped those men reach six feet."

"So should we call Ryan and Esposito?" Castle asked.

"No, they'll bring them in, because if it's not them, they might know who it is by the tattoo," Beckett replied. She glanced at her computer again, and saw that there was an e-mail. Just as she'd turned to reach down for the mouse, she heard Ryan calling to her, and he was leading in McKee with LT's assistance. Right after him was Esposito with Kennedy, so she left her desk with Castle, and they walked over to observation to wait for them once they had the two men in separate interrogation rooms.

"I want to guess you had some problems apprehending them," Castle stated when Esposito came into the room.

"You could say that, Kennedy took one look at me and bolted out the pub, but the ground was a little slick from the rain not too long ago, which helped me," Esposito replied, though he sounded irritated.

"And hurt you," Beckett said since his shirt was darker black than the rest of it, damp and muddy. "Go ahead and change. Ryan, you talk to McKee, and I'll go in with Kennedy," she told him. "Esposito, when you come back, can you finish up with the footage from the vic's building?"

"Sure, but you might want to be careful with him," the detective replied, pointing to Kennedy who was sitting awkwardly in his chair, still handcuffed. "He'll be tough to get to."

"I'm not that concerned," Beckett said simply. When he'd nodded and left, she waited for Ryan to start talking to McKee and turned to her fiancé. "I need to talk to him alone," she said simply.

"I thought you would when they came in," Castle said in reply. "Let's just hope he won't be like that other guy from the gang you arrested."

"We can hope," Beckett said before she went into the room. "Mr. Kennedy," she said as soon as the door was closed behind her. "You've got a temper it turns out," she commented, sitting down across from him. "Any reason why you ran from my colleague?"

"I haven't done a t'ing," the man replied bitterly, his voice heavy with his accent.

"Then why exactly would you run," Beckett said simply.

"When you see the cops," Kennedy replied. "Ya learn to run and fast. Now tell me why I'm here, and I'll tell you, you haven't got anything on me copper."

"It's Detective Beckett," she said before smoothly going into her first question. "Have you ever worked at Lexington Hospital?"

"Nah, wrong side of town for my kind, I'd be more likely at the Bronx Emergency room if I was to work there," Kennedy said, shaking his head.

"Do you know this woman?" Beckett then asked, not surprised at his answer. She set out a picture of the victim, watching him closely to see his reaction.

"No, but she's a looker," Kennedy said, tilting his head to the side slightly before straightening up. "Is the lass dead?" When Beckett just stared at him he continued saying, "Killed then?"

"Her throat was slit," Beckett finally said.

In observation, Castle waited for the reaction from the man, and was a little shocked at what he saw.

Beckett was feeling the same as her fiancé without knowing it, taken aback when tears shone briefly on Kennedy's eyes before he jumped up. "M-" was the only sound she could say before he interrupted her.

"Are you tryin' to pin this on me again? I told the bloody rozzers that tried to say I killed me wife that I loved Molly, dearly, she was expecting our first baby, I was gonna have a family. She was where she was because we were having a war just now, us and the Westies, they want us gone. And I never hit my wife, that was the bloody neighbor who was a widow of a Westie herself, reported on me and the fadin' bruise on Molly's arm was enough to tell the cop that came to our door I was hittin' her when I'd do no such t'ing," Kennedy nearly snarled in his anger. "I have no need to slit with a knife, no need for a weapon, me hands do the job well enough, if you're going to try and set me up for my wife's murder by-"

"Sit down Kennedy, now," Beckett said, having to match his anger when she said his name as she could tell by how tense he was that he wasn't going to calm down any other way. When he looked at her in surprise and then sat down hurriedly she told him, "I'm not here to investigate your wife's murder. I'm here to ask you about the murder of this woman," she said simply, her voice more relaxed, but still stern in tone to remind him he couldn't shout her down. "Do you recognize this man?" she said, pushing across the table a picture of their killer to him.

"Nah, but… that's our ink," Kennedy said in surprise. "Can't have that, there are only six of us left with that, and we none of us look like this bastard."

"Where were you this morning at five thirty," Beckett said then, watching him.

"Was down at the pub, watching a game of rugby coming in from the home country," Kennedy replied simply. "Was a second level pro match, last of the season, had a bet on, and I was t'ere about four forty five to seven. Can see the cameras t'ere, Rotten Charlie's afraid of being robbed."

Beckett nodded, and gathered her things back in her folder before leaving. She went into observation and said, "Taking notes? You haven't done that for a while."

"Had to, that accent is absolutely amazing," Castle said. "I haven't heard it that t'ick since I was in Ireland."

Looking at him with a frown, Beckett said, "And you took on that accent because…?"

"Trying to keep it in me mind," Castle said, still using it. He glanced up at his fiancée and quickly stopped smiling saying, "So, what do you think?" as seriously as he could.

"Though he's violent, he's not our guy. I don't think he's the 31st's killer either," Beckett replied.

"Yeah, that was a surprise," Castle said. "But he was heartbroken at the reminder when you mentioned the throat slitting."

"Have to see if Ryan will have any more luck," Beckett said. "But I'll go ahead and give the pub a call, see what the owner says."

"Ah yes, Rotten Charlie, wonderful name," Castle said as he followed her to her desk then. He sat next to her, writing as much as he could remember of Kennedy's accent as his fiancée was on the phone. When she'd hung up he looked over at her asking, "He cleared him."

"He did, said the game was the biggest that season, the Dublin Celts against the Cobh Saints, all the remaining members of the Glasgow gang were there, the same time as Kennedy was," Beckett said. "He's sending footage, but I believed him, I realized from his voice that I know him. He's the man who helped me arresting that mugger."

"What?" Castle asked.

"I didn't mention it, but the woman being mugged was his wife," Beckett replied. "He didn't have the name Rotten Charlie then, but it's hard to miss that thick of an Irish brogue."

"Hey, how come you can have the accent and I can't?" Castle asked as she'd taken it on for the last bit of the sentence.

"Because I'm going to stop with that," Beckett said simply.

"Say it again, later," Castle said in a low voice, his tone suddenly suggestive. He was startled when Beckett lost her slight smile at his suggestion, and he turned to see Ryan coming over from where he'd been talking to McKee. "We kind of have an alibi for everyone in the gang," he told him.

"Yeah, that's what McKee said, and apparently, his girlfriend was killed by-" Ryan said.

"The Westies," Castle and Beckett interrupted him.

"Yeah, you… Kennedy's wife?" Ryan asked. When the two nodded he said, "I need to call my friend in gangs, see what he says about that war they were having. And I'll call the 31st; let them know about the Westies possibly being involved in the murders."

"Ask him why the gang war stopped, because they might be trying to start it again by framing these guys," Beckett called. She glanced at her e-mail, seeing she had two messages then; the one from the hospital still, and the one from the pub that had just been sent. She was about to open the one from the hospital, when Esposito called to her. A little annoyed that she wasn't able to look at it, she headed over to him with Castle behind her, and saw that there was a man in the middle of the screen. "That's him," she said, seeing the obvious copy of the Galway tattoo on the man's neck.

"It is, but you notice something?" Esposito said.

"No stringy hair, no hat, just huge sunglasses," Castle commented. "But he looks like the sketch too."

"Get that printed out," Beckett said. "And I'll go and ask Gates if we should-" she started to say, turning to leave. She paused when she saw Thomas in the doorway with the man from the sketch and looked at the officer in confusion.

"I, I see you found me," the man said, stammering slightly. "I thought you would and wanted to make sure I got to you first. My name's Randall Eldridge, I'm Sheryl's cousin."

* * *

"Have you found any mention of him?" Beckett asked as Esposito came into observation where the rest of them were watching the cousin through the window.

"Nothing, and according to her file, she had two aunts and one uncle, but there's no record of any kids that would be her cousin," Esposito replied. "So either he's unofficially her cousin, or he's lying."

"Okay, we'll talk to him," Beckett said. "Let Kennedy and McKee loose, their alibis checked out; so did everyone else in the gang. Ready?" she asked Castle.

Nodding, Castle followed his fiancée into interrogation, and watched as she sat, careful to take a cue from her as he sat, relaxed in his seat as she was. Studying the man, he didn't really get a sense that the man was lying, but waited to hear his story to be sure.

"So Mr. Eldridge," Beckett said, opening her folder and holding her pen. "We've searched and couldn't find any record of your name in your so called cousin's information."

"Yeah, because we weren't blood cousins," Eldridge said simply, nodding. "Her parents were my foster family when we were eight until we were ten, then I was adopted by the couple across the hall from us. But though I eventually moved, we were pretty close and we stayed in contact with each other for as long as we could."

"Alright, then why don't you explain why you were in disguise with an obviously fake tattoo on your neck?" Beckett said as she could see the man's neck was clear of any marking.

"That was Sheryl, she was… she said her roommate was worrying too much about this guy she was seeing," Eldridge started. "And she paid me a little money I needed for a part for my bike; I'm a biker," he said quickly. "To just help her convince her roommate that the guy she was with was okay. And I know, I thought she was crazy, because she could just have the guy go himself."

"Did she ever tell you his name?" Castle asked.

"Johnny, but she never said a last name, and I didn't ask since she said she was really annoyed by everyone acting like they were her parents about him," Eldridge answered. "I was too, but you know, she was an adult, there was nothing I could do besides beg her to be careful. She promised she would be… but if that's who killed her…"

"So did she instruct you in any particular way to act around the roommate? And also, does her roommate know you?" Beckett asked.

"She does, it's why I wore the dark wig, as you can see, my hair is recognizable, she would have seen through it," Eldridge said, his hair a pale blonde. "At one point I thought Grace was going to say that she knew it was me, but then Sheryl distracted her and she never found out that it was."

Sharing a glance with Beckett, Castle shrugged as their confusion over how Whiting could have mistaken the hair color was answered; he then looked back at the man and said, "Did she explain the tattoo?"

"No, but considering how weird it was, with a dripping heart, I imagined he was with a gang," Eldridge said. "And that might be why she wanted me to pose as the guy."

"Alright, then can you tell me where you were this morning at five thirty?" Beckett asked.

"At home, asleep with my husband," Eldridge said simply. "We have a son we adopted, and he's colicky right now, so we were exhausted. Oh, and his mom was there spending the night to help us, you can ask her too." He then grew solemn and asked, "Is that when she was killed?"

"Can you tell us about Sheryl herself in the past month or so?" Beckett asked instead of answering the man's question. "Was she at all out of character?"

"Yeah, she was but then she seemed to recover after about two weeks. But I thought that was because she was having some financial problems," Eldridge said. "I offered to help her out though my husband and I have a baby now, but she refused. Around two weeks later when I saw her again, she seemed happy again, not worried. When I asked about her money problems, she said they were over and she was crazy for having worried in the first place."

"Did she mention how that got cleared up?" Castle asked.

"No, and I didn't push since I didn't want to jinx things for her," Eldridge said.

"Was this around the end of May, earlier this month?" Beckett said. When the man nodded she then said, "And did she ever mention a baby she helped deliver around the end of May? A difficult delivery or something odd happening?"

"No, but… besides the money, it was weird. When we saw each other the first Thursday every month, sometimes twice, for coffee she'd tell me all about the deliveries in the past month or weeks," Eldridge said. "And how happy the parents were, that sort of thing. But the first time I saw her this month, she didn't really talk about any delivery, not a single one, but she had at least fifteen. So I asked her about it, to tell me, but she just said they were fine. And I left it at that because if she doesn't tell you something in the first place, then she never will."

"We'll need to check your story," Beckett said. "But one last question, do you know who this is?"

Leaning over the table to get a better look at the picture, Eldridge shook his head when he saw the man in the middle and replied, "Is that the guy? He has the same tattoo that Sheryl made me wear."

"We're not sure," Beckett said simply, standing. Taking the picture and tucking it into her folder she said, "Once we clear you, you'll be free to go, but should you remember anything about Sheryl from a month ago, let us know," sliding her card to him before she and Castle left. "If this is a professional kill," she said as they went to her desk. "Then why would he bother to become her lover? Why not just a friend?"

"To make it harder for us to find him," Castle said. "If she was that much in love with him that she would set up her own cousin for this man, then he did not want to be found, his boss too."

"Alright, I'll take a look at her financials since we finally got them," Beckett replied, knowing he was right. She opened the file on her desk, seeing it was from the vic's bank, and she went back to the end of May, seeing that while the woman was not exactly well off, she wasn't struggling either.

"Well?" Castle asked, watching closely.

"If she was having financial troubles then they were in her head, she was fine," Beckett said simply. "But, there's a check here for about five thousand, deposited by her on the second of June."

"The father of this baby we still don't know about?" Castle suggested quickly.

"We'll see, Ryan," Beckett called as she saw the detective was coming out from holding. "We have a check the vic got that we need looked into." When he'd nodded and gone to his desk after taking the file from her, she stood up and began to write what they had gotten so far on the murder board. "I have to wonder though, if the lover was in on this," she said to her fiancée, turning to him as he stepped up to her.

"You mean the killer, or the cousin posing as him?" Castle asked.

"Well, with that tattoo he's more than likely our killer now," Beckett said simply. "But with the show of her cousin becoming this man…" She trailed off saying, "We've come up against this before; disguises."

"Yeah, and of course, since the city has such a large theater community, it'd be next to impossible to track this wig or any kind of special make up. Does it take special ink to fake a tattoo? Because that is not a transfer by any means," Castle said, pointing to the picture from the hospital.

"I wouldn't know, but if it does, like you said, there'd be a number of stores that sold it," Beckett said. "And we don't know what he looks like, not with this long hair hiding his features and his baseball cap."

"And we talked with the janitorial staff there," Castle reminded her. "It's not one of them, though one of them had his jumpsuit stolen about three weeks ago."

"It comes down to the baby," Beckett said. "And since we finally have the time, we need to look at the announcements from the hospital's site."

"When will we get to the point where we can have a warrant to check and make sure they announced all the births?" Castle asked as they sat back down.

"Hopefully soon," Beckett said, glancing over at Ryan. Looking at the announcements, she didn't see anything suspicious, looking at her fiancé she said, "If your theory about an illegitimate baby is right, what if it's from an affair the woman was having?"

"Yeah, that would make it more difficult," Castle agreed. "Try finding a name that you might know already, someone wealthy."

Nodding, Beckett went through a week's worth of past announcements, the two weeks that Eldridge had mentioned their vic not wanting to talk about. Finally she shook her head saying, "I don't see any name I might know, did you?"

"Not that I recognize," Castle said. "It depends on Ryan now, what he can find from the check."

Looking down at her phone then, Beckett saw that Alexis calling, and she glanced at her watch in confusion, a little startled to see it was two thirty already. "It's Julia," she said simply before getting up and going to the break room. She turned at the doorway, wanting to tell her fiancé to tell her when Ryan got something, but she found him right behind her.

"I need some coffee," Castle said simply, shrugging as he walked past her.

Shaking her head at Ryan who she saw was watching; hoping he thought it was in annoyance; Beckett walked into the room. "Sorry Alexis, I needed to get to the break room. You picked her up?" she said once the phone was on speaker, the volume low.

"I'm here Mommy," Julia said quickly, Alexis' phone on speaker as well. "And I got a new book!"

"Great, I'm looking forward to seeing what it's about," Castle said as Beckett leaned against the counter next to him as he got some coffee ready.

"Me too, so how was the rest of your tour sweetie?" Beckett asked.

"Was a lot of fun, we saw all the paintings that were in Europe. They had some from Spain and England and Italy, and lots of them were very pretty," Julia said. Her voice then was tinged in annoyance when she said, "But some of the boys didn't look at the paintings, they kept whispering while the lady that works there was talking."

"Well, they're a little young to like art still, maybe when they're older they'll be like you," Beckett said. "So was that all you saw?"

"Yeah, and then we went to eat lunch, it was fun 'cause I got to sit with Celia and Johnny at our table. They asked what that lady was talking to me about, but I didn't say Mommy, Castle," Julia replied.

"It's not really a secret," Castle said, watching his fiancée closely as he said that; relieved when she nodded to his unasked question.

"But I don't want them to know," Julia said. "What the lady said. Mommy, are you and Castle coming home soon?" she then said, not wanting to think anymore about earlier that day.

"I'm not sure," Beckett reminded her. "But Castle will be home in time for dinner with you and Alexis."

"I will," he said quickly, looking up at the doorway to see if anyone was near. "And Alexis?"

"Yeah Dad?" she asked.

"Grab some of the yams that you two like at the market okay?" Castle said. "We'll eat up on the roof tonight."

"Say goodbye to Castle first sweetie," Beckett said hurriedly as she looked out the window to see Ryan was taking something from LT.

"Kay, bye Castle, I hope you come home for dinner," Julia said.

"I'll try," he said quickly, watching Ryan as well and seeing him starting to come towards the room. "But I love you two and will see you later."

"Alright, Alexis, take her to the park before the market, if it's not too hot," Beckett said, taking the phone off speaker. "And Julia? I'll see you before you go to bed, I promise. I love you sweetie, bye." She smiled at her daughter's rushed 'I love you,' and said, "Did it take a while for Alexis to be interested in art?"

"Not really, I have to wonder why those boys weren't really paying attention to what they have there; they're missing out," Castle said.

"They probably haven't been there before," Beckett said simply. She then turned her attention to Ryan and said, "Did you get anything?"

"I did, the check was from a bank account in the name of Global Expedited," he told her and Castle. "Going to have to search a little more with it, but I thought you might like to know."

"Global Expedited," Castle said when Ryan had left at Beckett's nod.

"Have you heard of it?" she asked, watching him.

"I feel like I should know that name," Castle commented. "But it's escaping me… You know what; let me look at those announcements again."

"In the mean time, I'm going to contact Mrs. Bay," Beckett said as they walked out to her desk. "And see if the number of births for those two weeks is correct with the number of announcements."

"Can she tell you that?" Castle asked as he went to the desk on the other side of hers.

"She can, but she can't really say who it was if the parents didn't want an announcement in the first place," Beckett said. "There we'd need the warrant. Speaking of which," she said as she looked up at Esposito who'd walked over to them.

"We need more," the detective said, having come from Gates' office. "Than just the suspicions of her friends and co-workers that it was a delivery that was the motive behind the killing. Gates is thinking it's more likely the motive was between the vic and the lover."  
Nodding at that, Beckett asked, "Can you look through past cases?"

"She suggested it too, I'll be on the lookout for the same MO," Esposito said before he left.

"Okay, so we have a check," Castle said, looking at the murder board. "For a pretty substantial amount of money. I'm wondering if the person who wrote it was trying to bribe her to keep quiet about the baby."

"Then why kill her? Again, this is if the check is from the person behind the murder, or from the lover himself," Beckett pointed out.

"Then let me try this," Castle said. "See if it fits better. The check is a bribe like I said before, but from the mother of the baby, trying to keep the vic quiet about her baby being born so the father can't get to them. But he finds out anyway and finds out somehow that the vic knows about them. So he kills them by having the killer insinuate himself with her."

"It's plausible, actually, the check could also be from the father of the baby, like you were saying, but I would say the killing is because something happened to cause him to need her dead, to keep things secret," Beckett said. "Like a-"

"Politician," both she and Castle said at the same time.

"Or a newcomer," Castle suggested. "New to the field and realizing he needs to get rid of the baby and anyone who knows about it."

"If that's the case, then we have to get that warrant," Beckett said as she knew he was right.

"Where are you going?" Castle asked, jumping up as she stood.

"We're going to talk to Gates; she needs to see that we can't really wait for proof. If this child is in danger, we can't sit on our hands and let the killer find it," Beckett said, knocking on the door. When the captain had gestured her inside, she said, "Sir, I'd like to renew our request for a warrant."

"Detective-" Gates started to say.

"I'm sorry, but there could be a chance that there might be a child that our vic helped to deliver who is a threat to their father," Beckett interrupted her.

"And he could be trying to find the mother and child, which would explain why the lover was with her for a week. To try and get her comfortable enough to reveal to him where they are," Castle said.

"I know we don't have enough evidence to prove there's a chance of it, but sir, I can't wait for a child; a baby; to be killed for no other reason than it's alive. I need to know we're not recklessly endangering an innocent life just because we're not getting proof right out of the gate. I can't take the risk," Beckett said.

Castle was a little surprised when his fiancée's tone of voice changed to something more emotional than he'd expected from her. He watched her for a moment, before he heard Gates exhale and glanced at her, seeing her looking over to a picture to their right, of her husband and kids.

"I'll put in a call to your friend Mr. Castle, and see what he can do," the captain finally said, sitting behind her desk. "I'm sure though, if you need to contact the parents you'll be careful if you end up reaching out to anyone not on those announcements."

"I will sir," Beckett said firmly.

"Good, because I'm sure IA will be watching you," Gates said. "I know it would be something I'd consider in an investigation."

"I can contact anyone not in the announcements sir," Ryan said from the door. He gave a brief nod to Beckett when she mouthed a thank you to him, and said, "But I would want Beckett with me should I need to speak to them further than that. She's a mother; she would be sympathetic to the situation more than myself or Detective Esposito."

"I believe you're right," Gates said with a nod. "Continue your investigation Beckett, but don't forget to inform Ryan and Esposito of your findings."

Beckett murmured a thank you to the captain and then left saying, "Good thing you came."

"I had some information I thought you two would want to hear," Ryan said.

"About the check?" Castle asked. When the detective nodded they followed him to his desk and he took the risk, letting his arm swing ahead of him in his stride to brush his hand along his fiancée's. When she glanced back at him with a slight nod of her head, he was relieved, and he then turned his attention at the same time she did to Ryan as he sat behind his computer.

"So doing a little digging into the company, it is legit. Global Expedited is a shipping company, but it's only along the Eastern seaboard. From Maine down to Florida, and they ship anything by truck or train."

"And the owner? Anyone have a baby recently?" Beckett asked.

"They did actually, the co-CEO a Nate Catesby. His wife had a baby boy, on June second," Ryan told them.

"The day the check was dated and deposited. Who's the other CEO?" Castle asked then.

"His wife, Rosa Catesby," Ryan said. "And apparently they have a very substantial pre-nup, should he be caught cheating, he'll have to split everything they have in their divorce. But if he has a child with another woman, she takes his half of the company along with everything they own."

"So he tried to stop our vic from telling his wife about the baby from his lover-" Castle said.

"But she must have gone to him, telling him that she couldn't take the guilt and was going to his wife," Beckett continued. "So-"

"He had her killed," Castle and Beckett said together.

"We need to find Mr. Catesby-" Castle said.

"And stop him before he goes even further, and murders his own child and its mother to get rid of the evidence of his infidelity," Beckett finished for him grimly as they looked at the picture of the CEO on the screen.


	7. Shapes You Into Something Cold

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The title of this chapter is a lyric from the song Devil's Radio by George Harrison, from his album Cloud Nine.

"So they're bringing them in," Beckett said, walking up to Castle who was sitting in front of the murder board.

"Them?" Castle asked in surprise.

"Them, according to Esposito, Mrs. Catesby was very interested in finding out why the police wanted to talk to her husband," Beckett replied.

"Who're we talking to?" Castle inquired.

"To Mrs. Catesby, I'd like to give Mr. Catesby to Esposito," Beckett said. "And Ryan to be ready to check his alibi as well as look through his financials, to see if there's any evidence of a mistress. Though I know it could have just been a one night stand."

"Nothing on the warrant?" Castle asked.

"We'll get it, it's just the judge is finishing up a trial right now," Beckett told him.

"I remember now, he was telling me about it last week when I had him and the mayor over with Price for cards," Castle said in remembrance. "They were talking about it, the shooting of Olivia Cain by her sister."

"He's presiding over that one?" Beckett asked. When her fiancé nodded she grimaced slightly and said, "Horrible case, I did not envy the 44th that one."

"So if it turns out that Catesby is our killer orchestrating this, how are we going to find the mother and child?" Castle asked her after they were quiet for a moment. "Because we're not just going to give up on finding them right? Even if we do have everything solved with this interview."

"No, we need to make sure they're safe," Beckett replied. "I just realized," she said, looking at the names of the vic's two friends from the hospital. "We can ask Mrs. Bay about Mr. and Mrs. Catesby."

"Think she'd have any more information about them?" Castle asked.

"We'd need to find out," Beckett said. At that moment, the elevator opened, and Ryan came out, followed by the couple and Esposito. "Mrs. Catesby," she said quickly when Ryan had led the man to interrogation. "Please," she said, gesturing with her hand. "My name is Detective Beckett, I'm wondering if my colleague and I might speak with you here."

"Sure, but why are they taking Nate in there?" the woman asked as Beckett led her to the nearby room, sitting on the couch uncomfortably.

"It's just to speak to him," Beckett answered reassuringly. "I'm wondering if you might know this woman at all?" she asked, handing the woman a picture of the vic.

"Oh, yes, that's Sheryl, she… wait, they said a nurse was…" Mrs. Catesby began to say. "She was murdered?"

"You heard on the news?" Castle asked.

"No, I heard it from Dr. Shielding at Lexington, he delivered my son," Mrs. Catesby replied, almost in tears. "He and Sheryl were both at the delivery. She helped Nate throw the surprise party for me and Michael; our son; at the hospital."

"A surprise party, did he happen to pay her at all so she could assist him in that?" Beckett queried, looking at her fiancé.

"He did, since she had to pretty much put everything together. But I don't think anyone knew at the hospital that he did that," Mrs. Catesby said. "He didn't want anyone to get the wrong idea."

"I'm wondering if I might ask you about something Mrs. Catesby," Castle said. "Your pre-nup-"

"That wasn't what we both wanted," the woman interrupted quickly. "That was my mother who insisted on it. She actually hated his father, and she was hoping that he would never let his son agree to that so we wouldn't get married."

"But it didn't seem to work," Beckett said.

"Oh no, we're very much in love, and I doubt Nate would cheat on me," Mrs. Catesby said. "Actually, even if he did, he wouldn't be able to really have a child." When she saw Castle and Beckett's startled faces at that she said, "I know you think he killed Sheryl; I don't know any other reason you'd have us both here to speak with us. And asking about my pre-nup I'm guessing you thought he had an affair and or a baby. But Sheryl was a friend during my pregnancy, and he'd never hurt her."

"Then do you know where your husband was around five thirty this morning?" Beckett asked, having a feeling it was going to be something the woman herself could confirm immediately.

"Sleeping with me, he had a meeting today at the hospital, he left our apartment at six," Mrs. Catesby said. "He's a donor, and they're talking about expanding the neo-natal ward. We'd like to donate all we can since we were lucky to even have our son."

"And is that why you had the party at the hospital?" Beckett said.

"No, the reason was because I could leave, but Michael couldn't," Mrs. Catesby said. "He was born two months premature, and he needed to stay at the hospital. Sheryl escorted me from the neo-natal ward to the cafeteria, but instead took me to a room they have next to it, and there the party was set up."  
"Was it elaborate?" Castle then said. When the woman nodded he said, "Are you aware of how much your husband spent for it?"

"I don't because I didn't need to ask," Mrs. Catesby replied. "But if you found out about that check, wouldn't you know she spent it?"

Beckett didn't reply to that; since she and Castle had noticed the small withdrawals of money after that check had been deposited all around the same time, but they'd thought it was the vic going on a spending spree in cash until the money was gone. She finally said, "How well exactly did you know Sheryl?"

"Only in the context that she was there as an aide to Dr. Shielding for my appointments," Mrs. Catesby answered. "We had them late at night because that was the only time Nate could manage to come with me. But if you're wondering why he gave the planning of the party to her, it was because we trusted her."

"Alright," Beckett said with a nod. "If you can wait here Mrs. Catesby, I'd like to speak with my partners."

As she closed the door behind them outside, Castle said, "We were pretty close."

"We were, but at some point we would have found out he couldn't have kids naturally," Beckett said. "So motive would have flown right out the window then. But that would explain the cash withdrawals. I need to speak to her two friends again at the hospital now."

"Ask about the baby," Castle said quickly as they glanced over at the door to interrogation. He then looked back at her to see she was going to Ryan at his desk and talking to him about the alibi for Mr. Catesby his wife had given. He then followed her to her desk, and stood with her, watching as she was soon speaking to their vic's co-worker on the phone.

"Okay, yeah, no I don't see how that was relevant to my investigation," Beckett was saying. "Thank you for clearing that up though. Goodbye. So Mrs. Bay confirmed the party, said Mr. Catesby wanted the party there since he wanted to be near their son. And that the vic was likely worried about the money for the party being enough for what he wanted her to get."

"And her cousin? Why couldn't she tell him about that?" Castle asked.

"Because she wanted to keep it secret," Beckett said. "Believe me, that part didn't make sense," she said when her fiancé looked at her in confusion. "But it's what she said, so since she told me some of the things she knows our vic bought with money, I can confirm the last of the withdrawals as they correspond with some last minute plates and forks. And the four hundred is definitely the cake."

"And the reason for her using cash?" Castle asked.

Looking over his shoulder Beckett nodded saying, "She preferred to use cash because her purse was stolen once, about three years ago."

"That's right," Castle said as he went after her to where Ryan was standing in the doorway. "I remember that on her information. So Mr. Catesby's not the killer right?" he asked the detective once they were in the room.

"No, I decided to jump to the time Mrs. Catesby said her husband left that you told me," Ryan explained. "And got this from one of the elevators."

"Well, that helped she had so specific a time," Beckett said. Seeing movement out of the corner of her eye she glanced at the doorway and said, "We'll let him and his wife go home," as on the TV the man was standing in the elevator, talking with someone else in the car.

"What about when he came back home?" Esposito asked.

"Went back all the way to eight; when he came back from work, and checked every last car up to the time when he was supposed to leave for the meeting, no sign of him or anyone in disguise," Ryan said.

"I doubt he'd go that far," Castle said. "Plus his wife would have mentioned him acting strangely."

"He's right," Esposito said as Ryan and Beckett looked at him. "He was pretty shaken when I showed him the crime scene photo, almost was sick; that's why it took me longer to speak to him than it took you to talk to his wife. He said she was a godsend, as it was her quick thinking after his son was born that saved him from stopping to breathe. She managed to clear his nose and throat since she was the first to hold him."

"Alright, let me escort them out," Beckett said. "On my own," she said to Castle, holding her hand up to him as he'd started to follow her. Going to interrogation, she spoke with LT quickly and waited until Mrs. Catesby was there. "You're free to go Mr. Catesby," she told the man inside the room. "I'm wondering though, when you went into the hospital for appointments, did you ever notice a woman a little further along in her pregnancy than you were, a little disturbed or acting strangely?"

"Oh, that woman that kept her head down," Mr. Catesby said. When his wife nodded he quickly said; as they followed Beckett to the elevator; "She had dark brown hair, I think she was… Rosa's height."

"She was very heavily pregnant the last time we saw her," Mrs. Catesby said. "So she was close to her due date, about two weeks before our son was born. But we never got a good look at her, she had sunglasses on, very large so they hid the shape of her face. And she was on a phone, constantly on a phone."

"Do you know who her doctor was?" Beckett asked.

"No, we were always let in first to see our doctor," Mrs. Catesby said.

"When we were finished with the appointment, she was either gone or she was with her doctor," Mr. Catesby said. "I hope you're able to find whoever did that to Sheryl, it's horrible to think of what happened to her."

"I'm sorry we showed you that picture," Beckett said. "But we're trying to solve this case as quickly as possible. Were the waiting rooms busy at all when you went?" she asked, suddenly realizing something.

Shaking their heads, Mrs. Catesby suddenly said, "It was just us and her, and she was always there before us, I don't know why it took so long for her to go in."

"Thank you for your cooperation Mr. Catesby, Mrs. Catesby," Beckett said, shaking their hands. She gave them her card just in case; though she wasn't expecting them to remember anything else; and then hurried back to Castle and the boys who were in the room still. "Guys," she said once she was in the doorway. "We… what is it?" she asked in surprise, seeing their faces as Ryan hung up his phone.

"There's been another murder," Castle said.

* * *

Standing in front of the body of the man facing the back wall of the freezer inside the Bombay River restaurant, Beckett could see the obvious cause of death, and she looked at Esposito who was handing her a note that was stiff from the cold. Reading it, she turned to see Ryan coming back inside and asked, breath coming out in white plumes from her lips, "No luck in getting the cold turned off?"

"I'm afraid not, they need it on for the food, they can't let it spoil," the detective said, pulling his jacket tighter around him before buttoning it. "But I did get an ID on the vic if you want to hear."

"Yeah, sorry, go ahead," Beckett said, looking up from the note.

"His name is Gareth Charlton, the owner of this restaurant; he's thirty-six and is single. According to the hostess I spoke to out there, he was also partially the co-head chef," Ryan told them, looking at his notes. "I tried to ask about our first vic and if they knew of any connection to him, but she's never heard of her."

"What about the hospital?" Castle asked.

"That yes," Ryan replied. "He had a doctor there and also his sister had a baby there a year ago. She's single, so he went with her to some appointments and was in the waiting room when she delivered his nephew."

"That would explain this," Beckett said. "It's in the vic's handwriting; it says _Judge Nelson, June 28th, 3pm_."

"That's this Saturday," Castle said. "Ever heard of him?"

"Not that I can remember," Beckett said, looking at Ryan and then Esposito, who both shook their heads as well. "We'll need to talk to him, see what they wanted with him. For now though, Lanie, I think it's pretty obvious the cause of death," she said as her friend came inside with two of her co-workers.

"I can see that, but let me see if I can set his time of death," the doctor said, going to the body.

"Can you guys see if there's any way to confirm if Charlton had an alibi for the murder? In case it takes Lanie more time to get a time of death for him," Beckett said. "And when was the last time the hostess saw him?"

"Last night, about two, after they closed the restaurant," Ryan said. "He was the last one here as far as she knows."

"And how was he acting lately?" Beckett asked, wondering why she hadn't asked that before.

"He was pretty happy," Ryan said. "I wasn't sure about it, but from what she said, she guessed that he was in love."

"He was single," Castle said, seeing Beckett look doubtful. But he could tell there wasn't much behind that look, wondering if the boys noticed. "Was he with someone?"

"Not that she knew, he was pretty shy, but, past girlfriends he always brought here, to make them a meal himself," Ryan said. "But he hadn't brought anyone in lately."

"Guys," Lanie said, coming out of the freezer. "First, I'm not going back in there, second, your time of death was more than likely between six and nine this morning."

"When does the first person arrive?" Beckett asked, turning to Ryan.

"If it's not Charlton, then it's her," he replied.

"Ms. Sawant?" Beckett said, going to the Indian woman sitting at a table closest to the front door. "I'm sorry, but were you the first person here this morning?"

"I was," the woman replied with a slight accent. "I told the detective, I arrived at nine, and was a bit startled to see the place unopened, as Gareth usually gives me a call if he is unable to or unwell to do it himself. But I received no such call and no answer when I called him."

"Did you try and call him?" Castle asked. "To see if he was here?"

"I did, and discovered his phone in the waste bin in the men's bathroom," Ms. Sawant said. "We thought he might have locked himself in the freezer, but at our first look inside, he was nowhere to be seen, and we didn't think he'd be in that corner."

Nodding, as the vic had been found in a blind corner between shelves of food, Beckett said, "Do you know a Judge Nelson at all?"

"A judge? No I cannot say that I do ma'am," Ms. Sawant said after thinking for a moment and then shaking her head.

"There are security cameras here," Ryan said, standing just behind Castle. "I can check them out as soon as I get to the station."

"What about any other entrances?" Castle asked.

"And do you do a sweep of the place before you leave?" Beckett added.

"There is only this door to come inside," Ms. Sawant said. "And Gareth should have been the one to do the sweep; to check and make sure there was no one still here."

"Thank you Ms. Sawant," Beckett said. She then nodded to Ryan and went outside to speak with him. "We're heading to the judge now. Ask her if there are any cameras in or around the bathrooms; I'd have asked her but she looks overwhelmed at the moment."

"How was he found actually, that one I was planning to ask her, but Beckett's right, she looks shocked," Castle commented.

"She found him, they were getting ready for the dinner rush which usually starts at about six," Ryan said. "And they needed some lamb for their kabobs, which were on the back of the shelf. She's a little shorter than the shelf they were on, so she got onto step stool she brought in, and saw him crouched like that, low enough so the boxes of vegetables hid him."

"Alright, before you two leave, ask about the vegetables, if they always have those boxes there," Beckett said. "And also if the first people to search for Charlton noticed anything different in the freezer."

"That might be a no," Castle commented. "Or else he'd have been found sooner."

"Talk to everyone you can, take them to the Precinct if you need to," Beckett said. "We'll help out if we need to once we get back from speaking to the judge."

"Yo Beckett," Esposito said from the doorway. "Judge Nelson's at the courthouse now, he's about to leave though so you need to intercept him before he heads out."

"We will," Beckett replied simply and once Ryan headed back inside the restaurant she and Castle walked down the street and she said, "You're forming a theory."

"About Charlton and our first vic," he replied simply. "It's weak though, I'll need more evidence."

"Nothing crazy? About him trying to become part of the Indian mafia but unable to join a family because of a baby he had with another woman?" Beckett asked as they got into her car.

"Actually no, but thanks for taking that out of my hands, now I don't sound like I'm the crazy one," Castle commented.

"You always will," Beckett said, shaking her head before she pulled away from the curb.

* * *

"Judge Nelson?" the woman said after opening the door to the man's call. "I'm sorry sir, but there's a Detective Beckett from the NYPD, and her partner."

Walking into the office after the secretary had stepped aside, Beckett said, "Judge, I'm sorry to keep you from leaving, but there are a few questions we need to ask you."

"Sit, please. I was a little surprised to hear from your captain that I needed to stay, especially since she never explained what exactly you had to talk to me about," Nelson commented.

"A body was discovered at an Indian restaurant an hour ago," Beckett said once she and Castle were sitting across from the man. "In the freezer."  
"And you suspect me?" the judge asked in concern.

"No, we know you were here early from your secretary for a trial," Beckett said quickly. "We found a note at the crime scene; on the victim's body; with your name on it. And June 28th marked on it with a time." When the judge still looked confused, she showed him a DMV picture of the victim on her phone. "Do you know him?"

"Yes, you said June 28th? Yes, I remember, he was here with a woman, they were asking me personally; out in the halls a week ago; if I would perform a ceremony," Nelson quickly replied as his memory was obviously jogged by the photo.

"A wedding ceremony?" Castle asked, sharing a look with Beckett. "They never said their names?"

"She called him Gareth, as they seemed to be a little desperate about getting married as soon as possible," Nelson replied.

"What did she look like?" Beckett asked, wondering if the woman was the mother of the baby.

"She had short black hair, and very dark eyes, almost black," the judge said after he'd tried to recall her.

"Her," Beckett said simply, showing him a picture of their first vic that fit his description.

The judge nodded and said, "She was particularly concerned about a ceremony. Told him that they needed to make sure it happened as she was going to be sure that 'she' would stick around to wait."  
"She? Don't you mean her?" Castle asked, pointing to Beckett's phone.

"No, apparently they were setting up a marriage between him and another woman," Nelson replied. "I thought at first it was going to be them, but the man; Gareth; kept saying he'd talk to her if she let him. I guessed they were trying to elope or the other woman was starting to have second doubts; that happens often."

"That was the only time you've seen them?" Beckett asked.

"Yes, we… wait, I have the name right here," the judge suddenly said as he glanced at his calendar book. "I always write down the ceremonies that I have to perform on Saturdays."

Watching as the man looked down at the box for Saturday, Castle glanced at his fiancée when he paused and then went to his phone. "Is something wrong?" he asked; the judge holding his hand up to stop him from saying anything else.

"Nadine? Yes, I need you to come here," the judge said. As soon as the door to his office opened he asked quickly, "Was this ceremony canceled?"

"Yes sir, yesterday morning before you came in," the secretary said. "I had to field a number of calls since the trial was beginning that morning as well, so I forgot to tell you. But I was able to cross it off your calendar there."

"Who was it that made the call?" Beckett asked, looking at the woman.

"He said he was Mr. Charlton, saying that he didn't want Judge Nelson to perform the ceremony," the secretary replied.

"Do you know when exactly they called?" Castle asked.

"Yes, it was the very first call I answered yesterday, so there should be a record of it," the secretary said firmly. We talked for about two minutes before hanging up," the woman said.

"Thank you," Beckett said. "Judge-" she started to say.

"I'll put in a call to let you have that number," Nelson said, dialing another number.

Glancing at each other for a moment, Castle and Beckett watched the judge as he wrote down a phone number, both of them hoping inwardly that they would finally have a more solid lead than everything else they'd had in that case so far.

* * *

"Okay, so taking a look at that number, tech couldn't really track it," Esposito said, coming up to Beckett's desk where she was sitting.

"You mean it's a burner phone," she said.

"No, I mean it's going to take some more time, it's part of a phone tree and it was deliberately buried there," Esposito said. "Looks like Castle might be right about this being a hit."

"Two hits," Beckett said. "With the way our second vic was killed. They must have staked out the restaurant to make sure they could hide in there until he was alone, tailed him to see his habits. And considering the fact that they likely did the same with the first vic-"

"There's more than one killer," Castle said at the same time as fiancée. When she looked at him he shrugged and said, "Too much for one man to do in barely a month if they studied these two so closely."

"And if that's all we're going to get for now, it's more than likely that they'll start looking for the mother and baby," Beckett said in slight frustration.

"What I don't get is why they would kill this guy, he couldn't have known her if he was asking the nurse to talk to her," Esposito said.

"Yeah, it looks like this was definitely an arranged marriage," Castle said.

"To protect the baby," Beckett said. "Which we think means the mother told the first vic that she was afraid for her life, and her child's."

"So she got killed for trying to help the mother hide," Esposito commented.

"Pretty much," Castle said. "And probably why Charlton was murdered too, even though he had no idea who the woman was."

"That's pretty cruel," Ryan said, walking up to them then with a file in his hand.

"Are those the records?" Beckett asked.

"They are," he said, handing it to her.

"Okay, so since you guys have everything cleared with the restaurant, then let's split up these births and-" Beckett began.

"Gates wants us to look into them for now, she had to convince the judge herself that we wouldn't contact the parents unless absolutely necessary," Ryan interrupted her. "And she wants just us to do it."

"I thought she might do that," Beckett said, nodding to show she wasn't bothered by that news. "Then Castle and I will go ahead and look into our second vic, and see what we can find. But, if you're able to determine anything, I'll want to know." When the two had left she turned to her fiancé saying, "What did they say?"

"Alexis is going to make some wraps for us," Castle said. "And they were fine with me staying a little longer."

"I hope so," Beckett said softly. "You don't have to stay the whole time."

"No, but I will," Castle said. "So let's go ahead and look into Gareth Charlton."

"Okay, we have his financials, and they're pretty clean," Beckett said. "But there's a pretty large payment here, about four days ago." She clicked on the link provided, and saw it was to a jewelry store.

"The wedding bands," Castle commented, looking over her shoulder.

"Let me confirm it," Beckett said simply, picking up her phone. She could feel him watching her as she dialed, and she looked to him once she hung up. "It was Charlton, he was by himself at the time, but he was on the phone."

"The first vic?" Castle suggested.

"I don't know, but let me go to his cell phone records," Beckett said, opening up the file on her computer. She went down to where the woman from the jewelry store had said the second vic had come in, and saw a little before that was a number. She searched it, not surprised to see that it was from a hotel.

"Should we go?" Castle asked.

"We should," Beckett replied simply, standing and walking with him to Ryan and Esposito to let them know what they'd found.

* * *

Watching as Beckett had the hotel employee step back, Castle waited for his fiancée to go inside before he followed. "I had a feeling," he said when he saw the room was deserted, even the bed was made. "But this woman definitely had a baby with her," he said, nodding to the table against the window.

Looking over at his direction, Beckett saw the brightly colored plastic rattle and tensed for a moment before she nodded, "Did you see the woman who stayed here at all?"

"Not really," the man said, standing in the doorway. "She kept herself covered; I thought she might be a celebrity, looking for anonymity."

"But she had a baby right?" Castle asked.

"She did, but she kept it bundled up and held close to her," the man replied. "It was wearing white, so I couldn't even tell you how old it was, let alone if it was a boy or girl."

"And she didn't check out?" Beckett said. When the employee shook his head no she nodded and started to speak when the phone in the room rang. Her head turning rapidly to the nightstand, she put her finger to her lips to let Castle and the worker know to keep quiet, and went to pick up the receiver.

"Detective?" a woman on the other end said.  
"Yes?" Beckett asked, recognizing the voice as belonging to the concierge.

"I just received a call from the woman checked into the room you're in now; she just checked out," the woman replied.

"Are you sure it was her?" Beckett asked. When the concierge confirmed that she remembered the woman's voice she then said, "Can you get that phone number for me please, and call me using the card I gave you," before she hung up. "Thank you for your help," she told the employee who was still standing at the doorway. She left the room then, not surprised that Castle was with her as soon as she set foot in the hallway. "She called just now," she told him once they were in the elevator.

"She must have been going to her room, we scared her off," Castle said.

"More than likely," Beckett said. She frowned and said, "She's around here, somewhere with a baby, she can't have gone that far."

"Do you want us to try and look for her?" Castle asked.

"I'd like to, but I know it'd be next to impossible to find her," Beckett said. "No, we can only hope that she can stay out of sight. For now, I need those two phone numbers."

* * *

"So looking at all the names, everything is legit," Esposito was telling Beckett and Castle. "Ryan managed to finish before I did, so he took a look at the numbers; both of them."

"And I got something," the detective called from his desk. Ryan waited for the three to reach him, and said, "Here's your call that cancelled the ceremony yesterday."

"Boodle's?" Castle and Beckett read at the same time.

"What is it?" Esposito asked as they all looked at Castle. "You sound like you recognize the name bro."

"Yeah, it's a club, exclusive to men, very exclusive," Castle replied. "And it's also located in London, England."

"So the person cancelling the ceremony called from the UK?" Beckett asked.

"They can't, the area code is here in the city," Castle said. "That's why I sounded shocked right now."

"It's a legitimate number," Ryan pointed out. "But whatever it's for, they're protective, because when I tried to call it, it was disconnected."

"Like I said, exclusive," Castle said.

"There's no way we're going to have to breech a men's club in London," Beckett said. She frowned for a moment and then went back to her desk, going through the papers they had on the second vic.

"What do you have?" Castle asked as he had followed his fiancée.

"The name Boodle's seemed way too familiar," Beckett said, handing him the paper. "Look at the beginning of this month; the first."

Castle looked down the list, and then stopped abruptly on the first of the month as she'd told him. He looked up at her and then said, "It can't be London."

"It's not," Beckett said. She went to her computer as Esposito and Ryan walked over to them, and searched before she stopped, looking at the page. With a short laugh, she turned the screen to them and said, "Ryan, Espo, welcome to Boodle's, NYC," as they leaned over to see the site was for a non-descript building around Central Park. "And our second victim was a loyal member of said club. Whoever cancelled that meeting yesterday did it while he was there for lunch; they were following him. So we need to breech Boodle's after all."


	8. Remember What Your Life Is

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The title of this chapter is a lyric from the song Appreciate by Paul McCartney, from his album New.

"One, two, three… one… two… ow!" Julia said before she giggled as she and Alexis suddenly stopped moving.

"Sorry, I don't think I was meant to be a professional dancer like you," the young woman said with a smile since she'd stepped on Julia's toes a little while they were practicing the waltz.

"That's okay, you help me practice," Julia told her sister seriously. She sighed then as the oven rang, and she followed Alexis to the kitchen. "I wish I knew when they came home."

"They'll be here as soon as they can," Alexis reassured her. "Hey Gram, dinner will be ready in a second, I just need to get the potatoes on a platter."

"Your father's not back yet?" Martha said, coming into the kitchen to pour herself some wine. "He… Julia, you might get hit by the door."

"I won't," the little girl said firmly, looking back at them from where she had planted herself on the floor in front of it. "It's not that big, and I wanna see when Mommy and Castle come back."

"It might be just Dad," Alexis said, sharing a look with her grandmother.

"That's okay too," Julia said simply. She then heard the door opening, and sucked in a breath of air, wondering if it her mother was going to be there too. She jumped up as Castle stepped in, and smiled, seeing he looked surprised to see her.

"Hey sweetheart," he told her as she ran the last few steps to hug him. "She hasn't been sitting there waiting for us that long has she?" he asked his mother and daughter.

"Oh no, she just sat down," Martha said.

"Us? But where's Mommy?" Julia said, since by then she'd stepped next to him to be able to see around him, but found no one in the hall.

"Right here," Beckett said coming into the doorway then, smiling at the way her daughter's face lit up seeing her. She picked her up when Julia ran to her, and said to her fiancé over her shoulder, "There wasn't much I could do."

"Gates?" Castle asked. When his fiancé nodded, he rubbed her arm and then watched her put Julia down before he leaned down to share a kiss with their daughter after Beckett had. "Okay, so dinner?"

"Is ready, I'm glad you came back when you did," Alexis said.

"You've got a date?" Martha asked as they gathered around the table.

"Sort of," Alexis replied. "Edith and Max invited me with them to Coney Island, and they're setting me up on a blind date with her cousin. He moved here from Atlanta to go to school at Columbia, so he'll be living here."

"Is he younger than you?" Castle asked.

"No, same age, he transferred here," Alexis replied.

"Are you gonna have two dinners?" Julia asked.

"No," Alexis said with a small laugh. "We're going to have dessert, walk on the beach a little and then hit the rides and games."

"Hopefully you'll distance them far apart," Martha said.

"I will, so, now you can tell us how your trip to the Met was," Alexis said to Julia.

"Go ahead sweetie," Beckett said, when the little girl looked at her questioningly.

"Kay, we looked at art from Europe, and I got to take a lot of pictures," Julia said hesitatingly. "And we had lunch there, I got to sit with Johnny and Celia," she continued, sounding happier then. She talked about her trip and then playing in the park with Alexis an hour earlier in between bites at her mother's and Castle's urging. She was still talking to Martha and her sister as Castle and Beckett cleared the table, telling them about the next day.

"Ever think that could be the Johnny they're talking about?" Castle asked his fiancée as he rolled up his sleeves to start washing the dishes.

"I don't think so, you've seen Johnny, he's more of a dancer than anything else," Beckett said simply. "And he's also only five years old."

"Right, so, Boodle's?" Castle asked in a low voice, glancing first at the table to make sure that Julia was still talking to his mother and Alexis.

"They said the phone that the person used to cancel the wedding from was stolen, so they disconnected the number," Beckett explained quickly. "It took little time to find that out; so I was able to leave quicker. Anyways, they contacted Robbery at the 93rd Precinct by then, and they'll be sending us a copy of the security footage tomorrow morning."

"They were gone already," Castle said.

"The investigating officer, yes," Beckett said, starting to get some milk for Julia.

"Actually, what would you say to some ice cream?" Castle asked to stop her. When she glanced at him he said, "To apologize for not getting to eat on the roof tonight."

"Can we?" Julia asked, making them look at her. She smiled and said, "Alexis went to go get ready."

"Mother? Want to come with us?" Castle asked.

"We're going to get some shaved ice," Beckett said. When her fiancé looked at her then, she said, "I saw the place was open in the cab."

"That's alright, I'll catch up on a few things here I need to do," Martha commented.

"Like what?" Castle said in slight confusion.

"I need to get my classes ready for the next semester," Martha said simply. "I need to write down lessons for my students and any new ones, so I won't go in to the studio without anything at all prepared."

"You could still hold the classes in August," Beckett said, since Castle's mother was waiting until September to start teaching again. "We'd get married on a Saturday or Sunday."

"That's alright, and really, I'm not stopping until the first of next month," Martha commented.

"Which is only a little over a week away," Castle pointed out.

"Go," Martha said, shaking her head. "I've never really liked shaved ice. Plus you two need to spend time with your daughter. I would say daughters, but since Alexis is going on that date, another time."

"We could bring you some ice cream back Martha," Julia said, going to her and taking her hand.

"That's alright kiddo, have fun with your mom and dad and maybe one day this summer I'll take you and Alexis," Martha replied, leaning down slightly to cup her chin.

Smiling as the little girl hugged his mother, Castle said, "We should get going, I plan on playing some UNO tonight and I'll need two other people to play with me."

"Mommy and Martha?" Julia asked teasingly. She giggled when Castle tickled her, and she took his hand to go to the closet where she switched her dance shoes for her sandals. "I can walk in those," she sighed as she watched him close the closet door.

"You'd scuff them on the street sweetie, and we need those until you grow out of them," Beckett said. "We'll be back Martha," she said, stopping Castle from walking out the door.

"Bye Alexis!" Julia called, prompting Castle to say the same.

"Bye, have fun, and I'll tell you how Coney was tomorrow morning at breakfast," Alexis called back after Beckett had said goodbye.

When they'd reached the curb outside the building, Castle was going to start raising his hand to hail a cab, when Beckett stopped him. "Oh, we're walking?" he asked. "It's a little far," looking at their daughter.

"We can carry her," Beckett replied simply. She took Julia's hand before they started to walk down the street and said to her, "I was wondering sweetie."  
"Yeah?" the little girl asked when her mother didn't continue.

"Did you get anything at the gift shop earlier?" Beckett asked.

Julia giggled, but didn't reply to that at first, letting them walk in silence a little before she said, "It's a surprise."

"A new book?" Castle asked. When the little girl looked up at him in surprise he said, "Your mom told me what she told you at the museum."

"Yeah, I got a book," Julia said with a nod. "It's about a painter. Picasso," she pronounced the name slowly. "Miss Granby said he was from Spain, but he had to go to France."

"She's right," Beckett said, seeing her looking at her questioningly. "He needed to live in France so he could keep painting."

"I'm interested in seeing that book," Castle commented. "See what it's about."  
"We'll read it tonight," Beckett promised. "For now, here we are, and sweetie, nothing too big okay?"

Watching her mother closely as she and Castle ordered, Julia tried to see if she was okay. She hadn't told Martha or Alexis about the trouble her mother might be in at work, though they had said it wasn't a secret. She didn't think they wanted people to know though, guessing they had said it was okay for her to tell her friends since they wouldn't understand. But she did. She knew there was more to it than her mother was telling her, and she felt worried, wondering if she could lose her job. She felt confused by that idea; on the one hand she would be able to spend more time with her mother that summer. But she knew her mother helped people, and she didn't want to be happy when people needed her help. Biting her lower lip, she jumped a little when she felt a hand on her shoulder, and looked up into her mother's eyes. Smiling a little, she took her snow cone and followed them to a table.

"Are you okay sweetie?" Beckett asked as Castle picked Julia up and put her on her booster seat.

"Yeah," Julia said, smiling a little wider at her and Castle. "Oh, Mommy, Castle, I have something for your…" she started to say before suddenly clamping her mouth shut.

"For our wedding," Castle said in a low tone so only they would hear. "What is it?"

"I can't say, it's a surprise, but Martha said it was a good idea, and so did Alexis," Julia said eagerly. "Can we go home now?"

"Eat your dessert," Beckett said. She smiled when Julia tried to get a large spoonful of the ice, but she gently took the spoon from her and shook off some. Watching her eating the bright blue ice, she smoothed her hair away from her cheek and looking into her green eyes, she realized with a jolt that Julia somehow knew. She knew her daughter didn't recognize exactly what was going on, but the little girl was aware that she hadn't been exactly honest with what was going on at work. She glanced at Castle, and then smiled a little as she saw her fiancé was looking at them worriedly, and reached across the table, squeezing his arm gently before she said, "So sweetie, we're going to be in the Hamptons next month and there's something I wanted to ask. Is there anything specifically that you want to do while we're there that you haven't told us already?"

"Besides swimming in the pool and ocean," Castle said, knowing that whatever Beckett had comprehended she would want to talk about it later. He smiled when Julia did at what he'd said, and watched as she ate more ice and then spoke.

"I dunno, we go there all the time," the little girl said. "What else can we do? Can we go hiking again?"

"If it's not too hot, I think we can manage to," Beckett said. "Though at the end of August it wasn't that bad when we went."

"There's another trail I can take you to, when we go," Castle said. "It's one of Alexis' favorites, it's a little bit further than the one we went to and a little more difficult, but it ends on a public beach that people don't usually go to, so we should make a day out of it, take lunch and swim there."

"Alexis will come right?" Julia asked.

"We're all going together sweetie," Beckett started to say before she paused. "How are we going to do that, you never explained."

"We'll go in the same car," Castle said simply. "We will fit."

"My dad?" Beckett reminded him. "He said he's going remember."

"Right, okay, so we might need to split up," Castle said. "We'll take the Ferrari and-"

"Your red car?" Julia interrupted eagerly. "Where will I sit?"

"We're not going in the Ferrari Castle," Beckett said sternly. "We should rent a car for my dad or Alexis to drive. Or Martha, does she ever drive out there?"

"She did before Alexis got her license and she will if she's on her own," Castle answered. "Okay, we'll take the Benz and I'll get them a car."

"Ready sweetie?" Beckett asked as she saw that Julia was scraping the bottom of her bowl.

At their daughter's nod, Castle and Beckett soon left, Julia walking in between them holding their hands. Since they could, they lifted her up and down in between them, watching her and smiling as she cried out in joy, kicking her legs in the air before begging them to do it again as they returned home.

* * *

"Time to shuffle," Julia said, standing next to Castle as they were at the table.

"Thank you sweetheart," he said, taking the UNO deck from her and sharing a kiss with her. He shuffled the deck; dividing it in half since there were too many cards for all at once. He shared a smile with his fiancée when Julia took the other half of the deck, trying to copy his hands but only managing to make the cards fly over the table. "Nice try, but I promise once your hands are bigger when you grow up I'll teach you how to do that," he told her as she gathered the cards back together.

"Can you do that Mommy?" Julia asked, going around her chair which she'd instructed Castle to put at the corner of the table between him and her mother.

"I can," Beckett said. She smiled when she helped Julia up onto her chair, and took the cards she slid to her, a serious look on her face. "I start to wonder," she said to Castle as she brushed some hairs off of Julia's forehead. "If we should teach her to play with cards."

"Well, I taught Alexis card games, but waited until she was older to teach her poker," Castle said. "I think if we stick with Michigan rummy for now, that should be okay."

"And we don't teach her how to bet," Beckett pointed out to him. "With money anyways."

"Aren't we going to play?" Julia said, pouting a little. "I don't wanna play with money, I'm saving."

"For what sweetie?" Beckett asked, leaning over and kissing the top of her head.

"A wedding present for you," Julia said eagerly, looking back and forth between them. When she saw their surprise she said, "Don't I get one for you? Betty says her aunt and uncle got presents for their wedding on Saturday. She got them a frame for a picture from their wedding. Do you take pictures at your wedding?"

"We will, but you don't really need to get us a gift," Castle said, looking at Beckett. When his fiancée mouthed his second ex-wife's name, he shook his head, knowing she meant Alexis mentioning that.

"But if you want to," Beckett quickly said as Julia suddenly looked disappointed. "Then you can. But what are you going to get?"

Shaking her head firmly Julia said, "That's a secret and you will see when you get married. I hope it's gonna be soon! Oh, can I show you the idea I had?"

"You should Julia," Martha said, coming down the stairs. "They'll love it I'm sure."

"Should I deal you in Mother?" Castle asked as he dealt the cards though Julia was rushing to his office.

"That's alright, I'll just watch one game before I head back to my room and my notes," Martha commented. "So how are things?"

"At a standstill for now," Beckett said simply, getting her cards in order. "But we're doing the best we can."  
"Of course," Martha said. "Now please, hear her out, because she thought of this all on her own," she told her son and Beckett as she saw Julia coming back to them.

"Peacock feathers?" Castle asked, seeing Julia held a male peacock feather and a white male feather.

"Yeah, they had them at the museum and I bought them 'cause I thought of this," Julia said eagerly, handing her mother a picture. "I can't draw good though," she said with a frown.

"No, I get it," Beckett said, laying the picture on the table as Castle helped their daughter sit in her chair. "And what do you want to use these for?"

"For the tables after you are married, where we eat dinner," Julia said. She then frowned and tried to speak before saying, "The center… center…"

"Centerpieces," Martha commented. "When I came home she ran up to me, talking so quickly I couldn't understand her at first, luckily Alexis was able to translate for me. She wants to use these feathers on the table and on the flowers."

"I think we can," Castle said, thinking for a moment. "We were planning on having white orchids with the other two flowers like vines, remember we were with you when we planned them Julia." At the little girl's nod he then said, "You'd want the feathers in the middle?"

"Yeah, sticking up on top with a ribbon the color you have on your dress Mommy, and it's like this," Julia said, making a swooping motion with her finger on her attempt to draw the centerpiece.

"I have another idea too," Beckett said, smiling at her daughter and cupping her cheek. "What if we tied two feathers together with that same ribbon, and then set it on top of the napkin of the place settings, and on top of that a-"

"Place card," Castle and Beckett said together. He continued saying, "I think that's a great idea, and they're very yin and yang. So we'll have to remember that, and thank you Julia, those'll really make our tables pop under the tent."

"He's right," Beckett said when their daughter turned to her with a slight blush on her cheeks. "They're perfect, and we were planning on having black napkins, so the feathers will show up more."

Nodding happily, Julia then reached into the pocket her skirt had, and pulled out two things. "I-I bought something for you Mommy," she said, holding out the cinnabar bracelet to her.

"Oh Julia, this is beautiful," Beckett said, leaning over to kiss her daughter's cheek. "And that?"

"For me," Julia whispered. "I saw… I saw Grandpapa had a picture at his home of you and Grandmama with flower bracelets and I wanted to have a bracelet with you too," she said, hesitating before she finished in almost a rush. "Is that okay?"

"It is," Beckett said, stroking her cheek with the back of her fingers. "And I made those flower bracelets for us when I was your age."

"I wish I could make those for us, but I don't see flowers small like those," Julia said as her mother helped her put on her bracelet.

"They were daisies, and I think it's too late for them to grow, but this is as good as that," Beckett assured her. "We have flowers here too," she said, fingering the etched in lotuses in the blue bracelet. She leaned down and shared a kiss with Julia saying, "Thank you so much sweetie, I love it. And I love you too."  
"I love you Mommy," Julia said seriously before she smiled. She then turned to Castle and Martha and said, "I'm sorry I didn't buy you anything too."  
"It's alright Julia, you don't need to get us something all the time," Martha said. "We'd love pictures though; you know I have your pictures at the studio. So any time you want to color something for us, we'll be very grateful."  
"Kay," Julia said with a wide smile. She looked at Castle, and giggled as he kissed her forehead tenderly. "Do you want pictures too?"

"I would, but only when you want to draw them," he told her. "But I should tell you, I've been saving the pictures you've given me so far, to be able to hang them in my office as soon as I can."

"Really?" Julia asked in surprise. "Where will you put them?" she asked, looking over at the room.

"I'll find places, I did when Alexis drew pictures for me," Castle said.

"I'll draw more," Julia said seriously. "Now can we play? I wanna read the book I got today!"

Laughing, Castle overturned the first card in the holder, and Beckett set down a blue six card, beginning the game as they spoke with Martha and Julia while the game was going on. At the end of the game; which Julia managed to win, crying out, " _Cero_ ," happily as she set down her last card; they got the cards ready to play a second game while Martha stood up to head up to her room.

"Have fun with your game," she told the three as she watched Julia clamber down from her chair and hurry around the table to her. "Where did you learn that word?" she asked as she hugged the little girl.

"From Grandpapa, we played UNO with his friend," Julia said.

"The day before Father's Day," Beckett explained at Martha's slightly confused look.

"I'll say goodnight now darling, I hope you have a lot of fun at the stables, but knowing your parents, it's no surprise you will," Martha said with a smile. She kissed Julia's cheek as she giggled. "Take a lot of pictures."

"Kay, are you gonna pick me up tomorrow?" Julia asked.

"Like I said I would, and you'll come to class with me, I know Pablo will be happy to see you again," Martha said. She then said to her son and Beckett, "I have a late class as well, we're heading to the park near my studio to practice some chase scenes from selected plays, they work better in the outdoors when you're learning. So I'll have to leave at six for that."  
"I'll be here at least. And Alexis?" Castle said.

"You'll have to ask her, she didn't fill me in on her plans," Martha said. "Good night everyone I'm sure we'll be seeing one another for breakfast."

After they'd said goodnight to Castle's mother, Julia got back on her chair and asked, "One more game?" as Beckett was dealing the cards.

"One more, then a bath, and then your book," Beckett said, smiling as her bracelet hit the table. She leaned over and tried to kiss Julia's cheek when the little girl squealed and leaned away.

"You're gonna see my cards Mommy!" Julia cried, laughing. She then put them down on the table and hugged her mother around the neck before they shared a kiss. She felt someone tapping her left shoulder, and turned to Castle before leaning over to him and sharing a kiss with him.

"Thank you, and you're first you know," he told her.

Nodding, Julia set down the first card, looking slyly at Castle out of the corner of her eye as it was a draw two card.

"Right out of the gate," he said, groaning mockingly. He watched as Beckett and then Julia played, and he was finally able to play, putting down a reverse card.

"Thanks Castle," Beckett said, rolling her eyes.

"Thank you!" Julia cried since she was able to play again.

The game lasted longer than they had all expected, but in the end Castle won, and he ended up making his fiancée and their daughter laugh as he slammed down his final card with the rest of the deck as hard as it was possible to do. He and Beckett then cleaned up and put away the deck, while Julia took her picture and the feathers back to his office, placing them on Castle's desk before they headed upstairs.

"You're going to be so tired tomorrow sweetie," Beckett said a few minutes later, kneeling next to the tub with Castle as she washed their daughter's hair.

"I'm glad you could help us go to see the horsies," Julia said eagerly, wiping the water out of her face when her mother had finished. She waited impatiently until she had washed her legs, and was able to play with her toy foam shapes. "I hope we can ride a pony," she commented, starting to try and make a horse on the wall.

"You'll have to see, there are a lot of kids in your camp," Castle said. "It depends on how many ponies they have."

"I'm wondering," Beckett began, watching their daughter as she started on a second horse. "If once it starts to cool down, we should enroll her in lessons if they'll take five year olds."

"After the wedding?" Castle asked. When she nodded he then asked, "Why not now?"

"Her name," Beckett said, trying to speak softly so their daughter wouldn't hear, but since they were so close, she was able to catch that easily.

"What's wrong with my name?" Julia asked, turning from a third horse.

"Nothing, but…" Castle began to say before he trailed off, looking at his fiancée.

"We talked about this before sweetie," Beckett reminded her, giving Castle a look for speaking first. "When Castle and I get married and he adopts you, you'll have the same last name as Alexis."  
"Oh, that's right, I'll be Julia Castle," the little girl said slowly.

"If you don't want to…" Castle started to say. He was stopped when Julia nodded her head and leaned down, sharing a kiss with her before he saw she'd managed to make a fourth, smaller horse. "So, is that us?" he asked her.

"Yeah, that's you, Mommy, Alexis and me," Julia said. "But I wish they were really horsies."

"Me too, that would be pretty awesome to see," Castle commented. "Those would be some small horses."

"Alright Julia, we need to get you into bed or we won't have time for your book," Beckett said, smiling at their exchange. She picked up the little girl from the tub and began to dry her as Castle cleaned up. Getting her into her pajamas, she then helped their daughter brush her teeth before they were going out to the bed.

"Here you go, _Pablo Picasso: Una Vida_ ," Castle said, reading the title. "Did you see his art today?"

"Yeah, when I got the book, Johnny and Celia and me looked inside, and asked Miss Granby if we could see his art," Julia said as she leaned against her mother who'd sat against the headboard. She smiled at Castle as he leaned over her slightly, and she patted his face when he leaned down to kiss the top of her head.

"She took you back to see his work?" Beckett asked in surprise.

"Yeah, it's nice, but I like the Europe art better," Julia said. "But there was one I liked the most, it was a har… harle-q-uin," she said, having a little trouble remembering the word and pronouncing it. "It had blue squares on the costume he had on, it was a pretty picture."

"I'm sorry we haven't taken you to the modern art section," Beckett said.

"No, it's kay, 'cause there are some funny pictures," Julia said.

"Well, that's how art was back then," Castle said. "When you're a little older you might like it more."

"There was another painting, of a lady in white, it was very pretty, he painted her really nice," Julia said, recalling. "Now read the book Mommy, please? I want to know more about him."

"Okay," Beckett said. She read about when the painter was born and when she came to his full name she paused.

"What?" Castle asked, watching her.

"This is going to take a minute," Beckett replied. "Are you ready?" she asked their daughter. When Julia nodded eagerly she took an exaggerated deep breath and said, "His parents named him Pablo Diego Jose Francisco de Paula Juan Nepomuceno Maria de los Remedios Cipriano de la Santisima Trinidad Ruiz y Picasso."

"That was his full name?" Castle said in amazement.

"You didn't know that?" Beckett asked, smiling as Julia's eyes were wide as she pointed out the lines of his name in the book.

"Do they always give people a lot of names in Malaga, where he was born?" Julia asked, pronouncing the name of the city slowly.

"Not always, but sometimes people have long names, you know some of the royalty in England have long names," Beckett replied. "Want me to keep going?"

"Yes please," Julia said eagerly. She sighed and snuggled closer to her mother and looked on as she described the artist's early years, up until the point when he went to school in Madrid. There was a hand drawn map there, and she pointed to the middle of it, at the dot there. "Madrid," she read off the page. "Barcelona," she then said, pointing to the dot in the north east of the country on the ocean.

"Your dad's been teaching her the fricative it sounds like," Castle said with a smile as their daughter had pronounced the c in the city's name as a th sound.

"Can you read the others?" Beckett asked.

Nodding, Julia said, "That one says Malaga. And that one up here says La Coruna?"

"Coruña," Beckett pronounced for her. "But you did a great job."

"You did, pretty soon we'll have to let you read the books," Castle said when Julia looked at him.

"I want you to read," the little girl said, shaking her head. "Keep reading Mommy," she said eagerly. She smiled when she felt Castle's arm wrap around her mother, and her at the same time, and leaned against them both as best she could.

Halfway through the book, Beckett had to stop, as it was late, and there was still a lot left to read. She smiled when Julia only yawned widely instead of protesting saying, "I forgot about the park, you're worn out aren't you?"

"'Lil bit," Julia murmured as she hugged Castle around the neck as he picked her up.

"Sweet dreams Julia, I love you," he said gently to her. He shared a kiss with her and then kissed her temple before handing her to his fiancée.

"I love you too sweetie, we'll see you in the morning," Beckett said.

"Breakfast?" Julia asked.

"We'll have breakfast," Beckett promised. "And Castle and I'll take you to school."

"Castle too?" Julia asked as her mother laid her down, smiling at him.

"Him too," Beckett said. She shared a kiss with Julia, and then stood a little, stroking her hair off her forehead before she kissed it tenderly. "Sweet dreams," she murmured tenderly to her.

"I love you Mommy," Julia said seriously as her mother tucked the covers around her.

Beckett sat on the edge of the bed, watching as the little girl's eyes slowly lowered and then finally stayed closed. She felt her fiancé taking her hand, and she looked up at him before she stood, leaving their daughter to sleep. "I want to go through the case a little more," she told him softly as they went down the stairs.

"I thought you would, I'll get some coffee," Castle said. "Wait," he told her, grabbing her before she could go get her bag. He pulled her to him, and kissed her deeply, feeling her arms snake around his neck as he held her around the waist. They were a little careful with one another at first, but seemed to relax quickly into their kiss before they parted, pressing their foreheads against one another before he whispered, "Okay?"

Remembering Julia's realization earlier that night, Beckett pushed the image out of her mind, and nodded quickly to his question. She initiated another kiss to help her further, and then pulled back saying, "I'm fine, let's just get this done and get to bed."

Nodding, Castle went to the kitchen, watching his fiancée as she went to the table next to the windows, setting out their papers. When he joined her, he said, "I really wish the judge's secretary had heard our second vic's voice when he was there."  
"Me too," Beckett said simply before taking a sip of coffee. She looked at the pictures and papers spread around in front of them, and sighed, shaking her head slightly.

"What's wrong?" Castle asked.

Beckett didn't say anything, just shook her head again and went through the pictures they had. She stopped at one and set it down on the table, closing her eyes for a brief moment. She looked up at her fiancé, seeing that he was watching her. "I'm not sure why I said we should look over this again, we don't have anything."

As she got off of her seat and stepped up to the window, Castle glanced down at the picture that she'd been looking at, frowning when he saw it was of the rattle in the hotel room that CSU had taken; though besides that there hadn't been anything else there; the mother had wiped it clean of fingerprints. He realized then what she was thinking, and he slipped from his chair to go around to her.

Closing her eyes again as Castle's arms wrapped around her from behind, Beckett leaned back into him and said, "I was hoping; praying; that we were jumping the gun with this theory about the baby. But that toy just brought everything crashing down around me."

"You're thinking of Julia," he said, surprised when she shook her head no.

"I'm thinking of that child, how it and it's mother are out there, running," Beckett said. "And we're nowhere close to finding out who the killer is. What if they have to keep running, what if that baby grows up, always looking over its shoulder? Always afraid of what's behind it."

"You are thinking of our daughter," Castle said then simply. He felt her tense slightly at that, but then she relaxed in his hold. "This won't be anything like Julia, we'll find the killer, and we'll find them before the mother turns into her mother."

"We need to," Beckett said simply, turning as she shook her head. "I try to tell myself I can't go out and try and stop this from happening again. But everything's telling me to this time, to do whatever I can to help that child."

"We will," Castle said, hugging her close for a moment. "But at the moment, we're in danger of burning ourselves out, so why don't we leave the case for the moment, and try to relax so we go at the case with new energy tomorrow?"

"Probably better we do that," Beckett said. "Except I have something to do before I can go into work."

"Right, well, I'm sure Ryan and Espo would wait for you," Castle said, remembering her polygraph test the next morning. "But that's tomorrow."

"Don't quote _Gone With the Wind_ please," Beckett said.

"Sure," Castle said easily, smiling a little as she did so first. "What do you want to do now though? Still pretty early," he commented as he helped her gather up all the papers on the table and put them away in her bag.

"Why don't we play a game of poker," Beckett suggested. "Right here at this table?"

"I figured it wasn't going to be strip poker," Castle said, taking the bag from her. "Since Julia's here. Though you know my room would be private enough."

"True, but I'm not in the mood," Beckett said simply. She kissed him quickly as he looked at little startled at that, and she squeezed his hand gently as she went to get a deck of cards while he took her bag to the closet. She then sat at the table, shuffling as she watched him walk back to her.

"What?" Castle asked, seeing the look on her face.

"Nothing," Beckett said simply, flicking her hair over her shoulder.

Letting out a frustrated sigh, Castle went to his chair on the other side saying, "This table's too big."

"It's not strip poker Castle," Beckett said, starting to deal. She paused then and looked up at him saying, "Though you know…"

"Know what?" Castle asked when she didn't continue. He was a little startled at the slightly predatory smile that spread across his fiancée's lips, but when she spoke, he quickly understood where that was coming from.

"Remember our chess game in the Hamptons?" Beckett said.

"Ah, you want to exchange a kiss," Castle said simply. Nodding he said. "Great, so you're planning on playing a lot of hands."

"Not for that long, we need to head to bed," Beckett said. She could feel Castle's confusion almost coming off him in waves as she knew he was thinking she meant they needed to get to sleep. She decided she'd subtly hint to him that wasn't what was on her mind when she was thinking of his bed, but turned her attention then to her hand.

As they were switching their cards and turning over some in the middle, Castle felt something brushing against his leg, and he looked up at his fiancée, seeing that she was looking at her cards intently. Narrowing his eyes for a moment, he then looked back to see what he had, and then laid down his cards saying, "Three jacks."

Smiling a little, Beckett set down her hand and said, "Straight."

His expression a little shocked, Castle looked at her cards and the ones in between them, but saw that she'd been right. "Okay, so, leaning over?" he asked her.

Not replying to that, Beckett reached over and grabbed a handful of his shirt before she dragged him around the table as he scrambled to get out of his chair. When he was next to her she turned enough to wrap her arms around his neck, kissing him deeply. She moaned as he suddenly pulled her off of her chair, and she had to quickly stand; somehow neither of them letting that kiss break off. She breathed in deeply as he moved away from her so they could breathe, and his tongue gently flicked to her skin.

Feeling how tense his fiancée had become in that moment, Castle pulled away as an idea came to him and looked at her intently before saying, "I think we're done."  
"We are, should we clean up?" Beckett asked, feeling her heart pounding loudly.

Glancing at the table, Castle shook his head and instead let go of her to take her hand, walking to his room. "They can be just as easily picked up tomorrow," he told her simply. When they were in the room after going through the door in his office, he kissed her deeply again, but that time more gently than before. "I want to do something," he told her seriously before he reluctantly let her go to lock the other two doors.

"So do I, you didn't feel me earlier?" Beckett asked with a little smirk on her face.

"I did," Castle said, looking back at her before the last door was set. He turned to her and strode easily over, taking her hand tightly in his before leading her to the end of the bed. "I want that too, but what I want right now I need you to agree to," he said, reaching for the first button of her dark blue blouse.

"You don't necessarily need to do something for me," Beckett said as he then stopped.

"But I want to," Castle assured her.

"And what's in it for you?" Beckett asked. "I'd love for you to just take without asking, you know I enjoy that."

"It's too late now," Castle said, getting another idea then. He became a little too excited, and he grabbed his fiancée, kissing her deeply before pulling back to look at her. "Well?" he asked, running his hands up and down her sides.

"Okay, but I'm a little unsure of what I'm agreeing to exactly," Beckett said, though she trusted him.

"Believe me, you'll enjoy this," Castle said, kissing her briefly. "And don't worry," he told her before he kissed her again. "I'm getting plenty out of this already."

With a slight smile on her face as she shook her head, Beckett watched as he went along the path of her buttons, spreading the blue fabric apart more and more with each one opened. She was soon kissing Castle as he leaned down and caught her lips with his own, his tongue easily sliding into her mouth as she put next to no struggle to allow him inside. She shivered as he pushed the shoulders of her shirt over her shoulders, and she let him pull it off, all the while they were still kissing, but very gently as opposed to before. She felt him go to her neck then, gently kissing at it before he opened her trousers to her surprise; having expected him to discard her bra first. "You're keeping this on?" she whispered to him as his lips brushed against hers.

"For now, I know already how I want this to go," Castle said simply before he watched as he slid his hands underneath her trousers, pulling them down by doing that. He was pleased she complied with him, moving enough so they were off her hips and very quickly on the floor since she wasn't wearing her boots. He suddenly picked her up, and kissed her as he walked around to her side of the bed, laying her on her pillow before he leaned down to kiss her. Intending to make it a quick kiss, his plan was suddenly changed when his fiancée grabbed his shirt and held him to her as their lips crushed each other in their haste to join them once more.

"So, just like this?" Beckett asked, panting a little as she watched him closely.

"Sort of," Castle said, letting her unbutton his shirt as he was quick to get the last of her clothes off. He had to stop her to help him, but finally she was naked, and his shirt was open as they kissed passionately, her nails raking over his chest as he held her on his lap, not sure when they'd moved exactly. Moving back slightly, he said against her lips, "I need you back on the bed."

"Not, oh!" Beckett started to say before she called out in surprise as he made her get on her stomach on the mattress. She glanced back at him as she held herself up on her arms and said, "I'm still confused as to why you do this. I'm already in your bed."

"And you'll be here a lot more nights besides this one," Castle said, since he knew she was teasing him. "But I'd like you to just relax."

"I am," Beckett said, but right when he'd said that, he began to massage her back, immediately finding a knot near her right shoulder. She let out a little moan that was nearly a gasp, and almost collapsed onto the bed as he worked it out. "Okay," she said, trying not to sound like she was grumbling. "So I'm not exactly but I was ready, I still am."

"Quiet," Castle said though he made it a mock command. "The longer it takes me to do this-"

"You'll be teasing us both," Beckett said. She suddenly moved, turning over and sitting up before he could react. Also before he could react, she was opening the fly of his pants, careful as she reached in and stroked at him.

Grunting at the sudden touch, Castle grabbed her by the arms, but was unable to stop her as the pleasure was instant once she had him in her hand. "Kate," he warned her when she let go of him to lie back down as she'd been before. When she didn't say anything, just looked back at him over her shoulder; her hair tumbling over it; he found he had a hard time breathing, or remembering what he'd been doing in the first place. But he quickly recalled and fixed himself before he went back to her, trying not to rush through his attempt to help his fiancée unwind.

Beckett felt a deep sense of accomplishment then as she breathed heavily with each touch of Castle's fingers on her. She'd wanted to coax him slightly, since she hadn't had much of a chance when they'd been playing cards, but she found herself feeling a little badly that she'd done that. She knew he had to be uncomfortable then, as he slowly worked his way down her back, and she bit her lower lip when his lips suddenly drifted down her spine, making her shiver in delight. "Rick, I-" she started to say.

"It's okay," Castle said gently, knowing what she was going to say. "I should have just brought you in here instead of playing the game. But I'm serious when I say I wouldn't change anything up to this point. Anyways, you're done."

Turning over quickly, Beckett took no small amount of satisfaction at the way Castle's eyes followed her every move, only to ogle her body brazenly. "So," she said, her voice changing in its timbre slightly before she realized it. "What do you want now I'm completely relaxed?"

"A lot of things," Castle said. He reached down and put his hand around her side, sliding it up slowly as she shifted once, very quickly, in response to that. He loved watching the way her skin danced to his touch, but when he reached the point closest to her breast he paused, looking into her eyes then.

"You can do whatever you want," Beckett almost breathed after she let go of her lower lip that had been between her teeth. "Especially that." She wasn't too surprised when he leaned down, but was slightly when he kissed her first. Pleased, she responded to him immediately, and wrapped her arms tightly around him as he got all the way onto the bed, getting on top of her. She moaned when his bare chest brushed against hers, but between her already spread legs she only felt the rough denim still covering the lower half of his body. "Castle… wait," she breathed before it slid into a moan as by then he'd descended to her breasts. She forgot her need to have him finish undressing as she held onto the back of his head tightly as he proceeded to gently nip at both her mounds before taking her right nipple with his lips to begin to suckle at gently, pleasure shooting its way down her spine to between her legs.

Raising his head when Beckett pulled him away from her left breast, Castle saw the slightly frantic look in her eyes and the feel of her hands through his shirt let him know why that was. He sat up on the edge of the bed hurriedly, letting his fiancée get his shirt off before he opened his pants back up again. He had to pause a number of times before he could finish that though, as Beckett was kissing him, and he couldn't keep himself from turning and responding by crushing her lips under his own. When they pulled away a third or fourth time; he wasn't sure how many; he looked deeply into her eyes, running his thumb along her lower lip slowly.

Her heart beating desperately in her desire, Beckett leaned over to brush her lips across his, and then pulled away, sighing deeply as she lay back on the bed while he stood. She watched him get rid of his clothes, and then let her gaze follow him for a moment before she closed her eyes, waiting. She smiled when his first kiss was between her breasts, but it soon disappeared as he brushed his lips over her scar very carefully. Looking at him, she wrapped her arms around him, feeling his erection against her thigh. "You-" she said in slight confusion.

"Just help me," Castle said quickly before he kissed her. He took her right hand, and together they grasped him; making him go tense for a brief second; before they were helping him slide into her. They both nearly sighed at the same time, it having taken too long for them to get to that point. When he finally stopped, he took her right leg, pulling it up to his waist and then easing the pressure off it, so she would know she could put it wherever she wanted. He felt that leg wrapping a good four inches above his hip at least, and her other leg went around his waist. He was a little startled, and looked at her, wondering if she knew he wasn't feeling it in him quite yet to fuck her.

"Move Rick, I think you've taunted us both long enough," Beckett said, her hands up by her head. She sucked in a deep breath of air when she felt him move once then, very slowly. Even with that, he was deep, and she was nearly biting through her lower lip as he proceeded to thrust steadily inside of her, watching her closely to see her reaction she knew. Closing her eyes for a moment, she suddenly pushed herself up onto her elbows, and thrust with him, soon meeting him since he was going so slow. But it didn't make it any less pleasurable, as with that they were able to feel each other, but slightly. She felt a rush of frustration, but knew there wasn't anything they could do to correct that at the moment. The thought was soon gone from her mind as he then leaned down, kissing her lips since she was closer to him.

Castle felt a sudden rush of adrenaline when Beckett's lips parted to his seeking tongue, and he rolled it around hers before they were wildly dueling as their heads tilted back and forth. He was feeling her frustration, but he wasn't really dwelling on it, as he was able to move to her neck when they parted from their rough kisses to breathe. He went to her pulse, just resting his lips there, feeling how quickly it was beating under the skin. He shuddered at the sudden thought that that was her life, and he could feel it; not just his lips, but around him, against him with her warmth and her desire for him. He kissed her again, thinking that was a little too deep of a thought to have while they were making love, and he turned his attention to her, feeling her hand stroking the back of his head gently.

Beckett looked on as Castle then went back to her neck when they needed to pull away from each other, though she wasn't seeing much but the side of his face. She felt him though, very easily, as he was making sharp, quick little nips against her flesh that didn't hurt but were hard enough for her to know where he was until he stopped at her pendant. She glanced down, able to see his fingers tracing around the aquamarine, and she smiled briefly before he leaned down, kissing around the hollow of her throat. Since the pendant hung lower than that point, she couldn't watch as her fiancé kissed around her skin. But again, she could feel it, and that was what she wanted more, his tongue lightly flicking out here and there before he moved up to her lips. "I love you Rick," she whispered just before he could kiss her.

"I adore you love," Castle murmured, their lips brushing against one another with each word. He closed the final gap between them, and they kissed deeply, sensuously until they had to wrench apart from one another to get any air. His chest slightly heaving since they'd pushed themselves to the last minute, he watched as his fiancée slid back down to the bed, and he reached over, his hand carefully palming her breast as she moaned and arched into his touch. He bent his head, flicking his tongue out once to the very tip of her nipple before he pulled back. Lowering his head again, he kissed the mound here and there, then let his tongue rove her skin, going wherever it wanted until she was pulling him to her other breast.

Breathing harder and harder as she watched Castle doing that, Beckett felt herself losing a battle with her own body. Everything that he was doing to her was becoming too much, though things were still very slow where they were coupled together. It still hadn't diminished the pleasure she felt, and she tried to warn him that if he didn't distract her or simply stop, that she was going to be finishing too soon. But she couldn't really be bothered to speak as he drifted up her body very slowly until he reached her lips. She took his kiss, a very gentle, tender one that made her even more aware of how they were moving together, so much so that she forgot her struggle against herself, and her orgasm was such a surprise that she cried out when their mouths were still joined together. But she soon parted from him, and her cry echoed in the room before he was suddenly chanting her name over and over as he was soon joining her, holding him to her tightly to feel him as he reached his climax.

When he was more aware of himself, Castle raised his head, looking at Beckett as she slid her hand from the back of his head to cup his cheek. He turned so he could press a kiss to her palm, and smiled when she sighed slightly. He couldn't stop himself, and leaned down, kissing her gently on the lips before he pulled away. He was slightly surprised when Beckett followed him, and kissed him again and he really couldn't control himself, closing the gap between them once more and kissing her as roughly as he could. He felt her arms tight around him, holding him close as they carefully let their tongues meet between their mouths before they slowly parted to breathe. He stared into her eyes, and moved quickly when she pushed on his shoulders. Trying to figure out what she was doing, he could only allow his fiancée to pull him to the end of the bed where she slid past him to stand up.

Slapping away his hand as Castle tried to grasp her ass, Beckett took his wrist, pulling him with her as she went to the couch across from the bed. She was going to lay down on it, but was a little taken aback when he stopped her and sat down first before pulling her down onto his lap. Before she could sit fully though, she worked with him so he was back inside of her, and she had to wonder why it was sometimes that he was immediately ready for her. But she also had to wonder in the same breath why she was as well. She was distracted then from her thoughts, as his hands were suddenly reaching up to her breasts, squeezing them gently. It spurred her to move, and she began by rocking on him, back and forth as she tested what she could do with her hips, feeling the muscles in her thighs flexing rapidly with what she was putting them through.

"God, I am so glad you ride horses," Castle groaned as he looked down and caught sight of her legs. He suddenly couldn't take her facing away from him, so he helped her turn, relieved that she did so quickly so he knew she'd wanted to in the first place. They kissed deeply as she began to move again, and he squeezed her thigh before grasping on the small of her back. After some time had passed, he slid his hands up her back, and kissed her intensely before pulling back to descend to her breasts. He was moving with her, slightly faster than she was, and he grunted slightly as she sped up swiftly. He tried to look up at her, but she held his head in place, and he shuddered, since she had her hands in his hair to do that. He moved over both her mounds, before he was suddenly jerked up to look at her. "What?" he asked, so startled by the abrupt movement that he nearly stopped moving. But he then felt her starting to falter and he tried to help her move again.

"No, don't, I didn't really want to be like this here," Beckett said, getting off of him. She was relieved when he stood up the second she was off him, and then lay back on the couch after he'd spread the blanket that was over the back of it. The fabric was like silk against her skin, and she was pressing herself back against it hard as he slid smoothly inside her, not sure if she should be embarrassed by the fact that he could do that so easily. But she knew that if Castle knew what she was thinking, he'd more than likely say he took it as a compliment that he aroused her as much as he did. She watched him then, seeing the way he kissed around her neck and shoulders, and she drew him to her lips, suddenly struggling with the rush of love she'd inexplicably felt for him in that instant.

Making his way up to her lips, Castle trailed his lips against her skin, feeling her tense underneath him until he kissed her. He stroked her side, feeling her moving with him, and he groaned as she leaned back, exposing her neck to him. Though he was a little frustrated with the interrupted kiss, he went down and pressed quick, short kisses to her flesh, groaning as he could feel the slight sheen of sweat that had accumulated with the time they'd spent together so far. Moving back, he watched her then, looking down at her left leg that was draped over the edge of the couch. Since it wasn't wide enough for her to hold her legs spread without wrapping them around him, he guessed she had done that to let him get deeper inside of her. He finally grew frustrated with their position then, and he moved, getting off of her.

"What-" Beckett started to say in surprise as he pulled her up. She followed him though he didn't answer, and she headed towards the bed as he urged her in that direction. Glancing back at him, she was a little startled when he suddenly grabbed her, pulling her back against him and kissing her shoulders before reaching down in between her legs. "Castle…" she breathed out in a whisper of pleasure as she felt his fingers beginning to rub around her clit gently. She moved her hips, trying to feel him as he was doing that, a little surprised he was taking the time for that since she could easily feel how aroused he still was. "Rick?" she said as she reached down and took his hand, pulling it away from her. Turning around she wrapped her arms around his neck and said, "You need to fuck me again, _now_."

Castle kissed her quickly, and then held her hand as he went to the bed, taking all the pillows and starting to make a small hill out of them with one hand before she slipped it out of his grasp.

"Hurry," Beckett said quickly when her fiancé looked back at her. The second that he was done, she quickly let him help her onto the bed, laying back and looking up at him as he entered her, making her breathe heavily, with her upper body angled as it was, she felt him more solidly against her. Her breath was coming out in pants before he even started to thrust, and she moved with him as soon as she felt how he wanted to, her legs wrapped low on his waist. She moaned when his right hand came up in between them and fondled her breasts, gently cupping and squeezing them. When his thumb came up to flick at her taut nipples, she clutched at his upper arms, her head tilting back. She felt his breath close to her lips, and they kissed roughly, their tongues slipping between their mouths as they fought a lot harder that time with each other. But it was no less pleasurable, and everything was building up deep inside her, specifically where he was moving. Though the friction was a little less, she wasn't disappointed, enough there still to stimulate her and make her happy as she reached for her end with her fiancé as they slowed down their kiss and soon parted for much needed air.

Nuzzling at Beckett's jaw, Castle wasn't surprised when she turned to him, and they were kissing yet again. The pressure of her lips on his, her tongue gently curling around his as he did the same, his entire mouth and lips were throbbing with the taste and feel of her, and he had to suddenly pull away from her, going to her ear lobe where he started to nibble at it the second he could reach it. He whispered her name, his endearment for her, hearing her breathing out his name in a sigh in response, and he shuddered, wondering how she was so different so many times. It was a mystery he was never going to figure out, but he suddenly thought he wanted to take as many chances as he could to try. Moving back to her mouth, he kissed her hard, but quickly, before he went to her collarbone, sucking on where it met her shoulder gently, feeling her slowly reaching the end and wanting to get her there soon as he knew he was nearly there with her.

Looking on when Castle moved away from her slightly, putting a little space between them, Beckett held her breath when he cupped his hand so his fingertips were facing up. When he first touched her clit, she writhed for a second, before trying to get herself back to his rhythm as quickly as she could, though it was hard because he didn't stop touching her. She was holding onto his upper arms again, trying to use that to thrust hard up against him. She bit at her lower lip, hearing quickly the sounds they were making together. Their hips smacked against each other with the speed at which they moved and their breath came out in short pants, concentrating more on moving than catching their breaths. She felt poised then on the edge of a precipice that she wasn't sure she could reach, when her fiancé took his hand off her, and changed the angle of his hips to push up against her. She let out a short cry at the first thrust, and she seemed to break, her hands on his shoulders, clawing at his back almost as her orgasm nearly made her pass out in the intensity of the ecstasy he was giving her.

Feeling her, holding her writhing body against him with one arm, Castle was with her, only mere seconds behind her, and he buried his face into her neck, groaning unendingly as the pleasure snaked through every inch of him. He still felt her, their skin against each other as they were both moving haphazardly by then, and his flesh was burning, aching as they touched and slid against one another. He was a little lost in her, and had no idea how long they were like that together, satisfyingly distracted from the passage of time until he finally stopped, slumping against her as she slid her legs down to wrap weakly around his thighs. He kissed her when he felt he could, and nuzzled her lips when they'd parted. "You're pretty amazing you know," he murmured to her, their breaths mingling together between them.

"So are you," Beckett sighed, stroking the back of his neck. "You surprise me; you go back and forth so often."

"I like a variety with you, especially when I can have you any way I can get you," Castle said, pressing his forehead to hers. "And I really wish we could but… sleep?"

Nodding, though she knew he wasn't exactly eager to stop, Beckett kissed him in thanks before he got off her, and once he came back to her they got the bed back to normal before lying down on their pillows. She put her hand on his that rested on her abdomen as he lay behind her, squeezing it gently. "Night Castle," she murmured.

"Night," he murmured, leaning over to kiss her gently on the lips before lying back. He thought she was soon asleep after he'd spoken; since her breathing was steady; and he allowed himself to close his eyes.

Beckett, though she had closed her eyes, was unable to sleep, her thoughts; since she had nothing to distract her; drifting to the next day and inevitably to hers and Castle's daughter. She felt her fiancé turn away from her eventually, and she moved, going onto her side to watch him for a moment. Finally shaking herself, she sat up a little, brushing her lips against his as gently as she could. Slipping out from under the sheet, she dressed in her NYPD shirt and the pair of pajama pants with them in her drawer and she left the room, closing the door behind her.

Shifting onto his side, Castle's body expected to feel Beckett's next to him, and he woke up, raising his head to find that she was gone. He looked around the room, trying to listen for her movement, but didn't hear it. It was then he realized where she likely was, and he hurriedly got up, throwing on his pajamas and leaving the room, trying not to run up the stairs and wake up their daughter. He slowed when he came up to the doorway to Alexis' room, seeing his fiancée leaning against the doorway, looking inside. He walked up quietly to her, and wrapped his arms around her whispering, "She'll be with us Kate; our little girl."

Nodding, Beckett then said, "I can't stop worrying that I might lose her."

Kissing her shoulder through her shirt, Castle pulled her back against him and said, "I won't let that happen, I have connections, I'll make sure you won't."

Smiling, Beckett was going to speak, when Alexis spoke behind them saying, "Are we having a sleepover," surprised when they jumped a little in reaction. "Sorry," she whispered when they turned to her.

"It's okay, we're just checking on her," Beckett said quickly. "We should get some sleep though," she said to Castle. "How was Coney Island though?"

"A lot of fun, I can tell you at breakfast," Alexis told her.

"How was the guy?" Castle asked.

"He was nice, not sure about dating at the moment though," Alexis said. "He was nice," she repeated. "And took me to a bookstore."

"Not bad," Castle said. "I'm assuming that's the reason why you're so late."

"She doesn't have school tomorrow," Beckett said with a smile. "Come on Castle. I'm sure you're tired Alexis?"

"Slightly, and I promised Gram I'd help her with her class, so I should get some sleep," Alexis said, speaking as loudly as she dared to as they went into the room. She looked on as her dad and Beckett kissed Julia on the forehead, smiling a little as her sister groaned slightly and squirmed onto her stomach before laying still. "Night," she whispered as the two left the room then, sharing a kiss with her dad as he passed by her. She watched them, wondering what exactly was going on with her dad's fiancée, but knowing there was nothing she could do to find out at that point, she went to her closet to get ready for bed.

Sitting on his bed, leaning back against her pillows, Beckett watched Castle walk into the room, reaching out and taking the mug of tea he'd made for them. "There's not really much we can discuss," she said softly though the doors were all closed again.

"I know, but maybe we should make a plan just in case… just in case," Castle said, sitting across from her. He took a sip of tea when she handed him the mug and then gave it back to her. "What if I tried to adopt her if she's… if that happens?" he asked, not wanting to put into words what they were scared of happening, feeling like it would happen if he did.

"If she's taken from me, you mean," Beckett said simply, not too surprised when he flinched in front of her. "It wouldn't work I think they know Julia's aversion to men, and I don't know if they'd take into account the fact that your mom and Alexis have taken care of her," she said, wrapping her arms around her legs as she gave him the mug to finish off the spearmint tea.

"But what if I told them I was engaged?" Castle suggested as he set the empty mug on her nightstand. He then reached out to her and pulled her onto his lap, holding her close as she leaned against his chest.

Smiling as Castle brushed her hair off her cheek, Beckett said, "I don't know, there's a lot we can't know unless it happens Rick, but… I know I'm not alone in this, that I do have you."

"Damn right you do," Castle said firmly. He then sighed and said, "I'm just hoping she never finds out about this."

"Me too," Beckett said quickly. She raised her head and kissed him gently before saying, "We should get to bed though, I need to be somewhat rested for tomorrow morning."

Before either of them could move, Castle leaned over and kissed her on the lips, starting out tenderly before it rapidly developed into a hungry, passionate one. When they absolutely had no choice in the matter and had parted to take some sharp gasps of air, he said, "Could I go with you? You know, for moral support?"

"That's sweet of you to suggest, but no, they'll just toss you out," Beckett replied as she moved so they could get under the sheet again. "And not just out of the IA department, but the building."

"Well, I'll be sending telepathic moral support," Castle said, climbing over her to get on his side of the bed. He wasn't surprised when they simply came together then, with her pressed against his side, cheek to his shoulder.

"I know," Beckett said, smiling. "And I appreciate it; I'll appreciate it tomorrow too."

"I love you, you know that right?" Castle said after they were quiet for a moment but neither of them fell asleep.

"I do. And I love you too," Beckett said, raising her head. They kissed gently, but lingered a little longer that time, before settling back down. That time she was tired, everything from that day catching up rapidly to her, and she was soon sleeping as she felt her fiancé holding her close to him.

Watching her to make sure that time that she was asleep, Castle was relieved to see the stress ease off her face, and he leaned down, brushing his lips across her forehead before he lay back all the way, closing his eyes. He felt a little uncomfortable, wishing that he could protect her as easily as he could their daughter. But he knew what Beckett really wanted was his support. Relieved that he could give her that very easily, Castle nodded off, arm wrapped around his fiancée's waist as Becket huddled closer to him, that being the last sensation he had before the pull of sleep drew him to it at last.


	9. Price That I Paid

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have some lyrics from the song Appreciate by Paul McCartney, from his album New in this chapter.
> 
> The title of this chapter is a lyric from the song Scared by John Lennon, from his album Walls and Bridges.

"Morning," Beckett said as she walked into the bedroom, seeing her fiancé sitting up in bed. "You didn't need to get up," she commented as she handed him one of the cups of coffee she had made.

"Yeah, how did you make me a cup if you thought I was still asleep?" Castle asked, taking a sip after kissing the back of her hand in thanks as she stood next to him.

"I could hear you waking up," Beckett said with a slight smile. She saw that he was watching her then, and she sat down next to him on the edge of the bed. "I'm okay."

"No, I'm just wondering, did you ever have to take one before?" Castle asked.

Shaking her head, Beckett said, "Never needed to. But to change the subject, we need to talk about my vacation."

"Did you get word back if you could take the week off?" Castle asked.

"I did," Beckett said simply. "And Gates told me last night before I left to come back. I forgot to tell you last night because we were pretty busy from the time we got home until we fell asleep."

"Pretty busy," Castle said, smirking. He laughed slightly when Beckett pushed at him, and he said, "No, you're right, we were busy with Julia too. What did she say?"

"I have next week off," Beckett said. "I am so lucky I have so much vacation I never took since I started with the NYPD."

"I know, have you used up much of it yet?" Castle asked.

"Barely a year's worth," Beckett said, shaking her head. "So I'll be able to take two weeks off for our honeymoon. Whenever that is. Think you want to tell me now where we're going?"  
"Not a chance," Castle said, watching her set her empty mug on his nightstand. He wasn't surprised when she pulled down the sheet covering him, and climbed onto his lap as he held his mug out of the way of her. "Don't try and get it out of me that way," he warned her jokingly.

"What about a hint?" Beckett asked.

"You want to play 20 Questions?" Castle asked.

"What if I guessed a feature about it? Like is it an island?" Beckett said. When he just stared at her she knew then that he wasn't going to tell her, so she sighed and said, "I'm a little tired of waiting to find out."  
"It'll be worth it," Castle promised her. "And you'll love every minute we spend there, well, not just because you'll be there with me."

Rolling her eyes, Beckett got up then, and said, "We need to get ready," as he grabbed her wrist, putting down his mug that was empty then. "Julia does have to go."

"Alright, but you know Alexis is getting her ready," Castle told her.

"She probably will," Beckett corrected his tense. "But I'd like to make sure she can eat right away and we can go."

"Oh, the stables, I almost forgot," Castle groaned. "And then they're going over to the carousel aren't they?"

"They are," Beckett nodded as she went to the door to close it. "And then head back to school for the rest of the day since the stables and carousel won't take too long."

"And then she's going to my mom's class with Alexis," Castle said. "It's still funny to see how much she enjoys doing that. You never thought there's a little bit of an actress in her?"

"Of course there is, we always say if she's going to be a dancer she'll need to be a little bit of an actress," Beckett reminded him.

"That would be great to see actually," Castle said, sitting on the end of the bed, watching her getting dressed.

"Come on, I said you were coming with us remember?" Beckett asked.

"Yeah, why?" Castle said, standing up.

Smiling, as she knew he wasn't questioning why he had to go, but why he was going almost three days in a row; he'd gone with Julia and their daughter Friday; Beckett said, "We need to do that more Rick," turning and leaning against the dresser.

"June's almost finished," Castle said seriously, nodding as he knew what she meant. "But we can't start so soon we'll jump the gun and I'll be kicked out of the Precinct before the ninth."

"I know, it's two weeks today you know," Beckett replied.

"I'm aware of it," Castle said. "But we've done everything we can, all our family and the few friends that know about it will vote for Price… even Skye and Mary would vote for him if they lived here," he said, relieved to see her smile briefly. He leaned down then and kissed her quickly before pulling away. "We have two weeks, let's take advantage of the time, and not worry about this, until we absolutely need to."

Nodding, as they were doing that already concerning the investigation into her, Beckett leaned up slightly to meet Castle's lips and they shared a slow, lingering kiss until her phone's alarm rang. With the reminder that they needed to get ready, she pulled away from her fiancé and went into the bathroom, watching herself in the mirror as she put her hair up into a ponytail. Since she was ready first, she headed out to the bottom of the stairs, pausing when she could hear her daughter and Alexis speaking.

"Are they up?" Castle asked, coming out then as he finished with the last button on his shirt.

"They are," Beckett said, heading up then. She smiled as she came to the doorway and saw that Julia was pulling her blue camp shirt over her head as Alexis stood by to help if she needed it. "Morning," she said to the two.

"Hi Mommy," Julia said with a smile. "I got dressed all by myself, Alexis helped."

"Thank you for that," Beckett said to Castle's daughter. "So I'm going to guess now you'll want breakfast right?"

"Please," Julia said exuberantly as she hurried to the bathroom. When she came back out she paused and said, "Where's Castle, I didn't say good morning?"

"He went to start breakfast," Beckett said. "Do you want me to do your hair?" she asked as Julia handed her her brush.

"Yeah," the little girl replied. "Downstairs?"

"We will, that way Alexis can get ready," Beckett said, taking Julia's hand and leading her out. Reaching the living room, she had the little girl stand in front of her and as she brushed out her hair asked, "Anything special today?"

"I want my hair loose," Julia said. "With this," she told her mother, holding up her powder blue headband. "What do we have for breakfast?"

"Something simple," Castle said, since he could hear them and knew the question was directed to him. He was surprised when Beckett gently told her daughter to stay still, and looked up to see that she was trying to look back to him. He had to smile at that; since she was usually still when her mother was doing her hair; and waited until Beckett had finished before he heard Julia running to him. "Oof, well, I guess now we'll say good morning," he said with a laugh as she threw her arms around him. He picked her up and shared a kiss with her before setting her down. "Excited?"

"A lot," Julia said, nodding almost frantically. "I was dreaming I was riding a pony with Mommy, and you were with us on another pony."

"I think you mean we were riding horses sweetie, I cannot see him on a pony," Beckett said teasingly as she sat at the counter in front of them.

"I'd have to walk while on that pony my legs are so long," Castle said. "But you know, in a dream, we could be riding ponies."

"That's what I saw," Julia said, watching their exchange before speaking in a little impatience.

"A good dream then," Beckett said as Alexis came rushing down the stairs.

"Emergency or something else?" Castle asked, seeing his daughter was holding her phone in one hand.

"It's for Julia, I just got an alert," Alexis said. "Paul has a new music video."

"He does?" Julia nearly shrieked. She sucked in a big gasp of air in her surprise and was about to speak when Martha beat her to it.

"I think your mother should let you watch," she said as everyone in the kitchen watched her come down the last few stairs. Martha smiled and said to Beckett, "It is Paul McCartney."

"You make a good point, I think we should let her," Beckett said, looking at her fiancé.

"Definitely," Castle replied, smiling back at her as he knew then she was very serious about them becoming Julia's parents more than they'd previously been before and sharing in raising her. As he handed out bowls of fruit and trail mix to everyone before they went to his office, he had to wonder how taking on a plural could make things just a little more different. He shook his head then and asked his daughter, "What's the song?" as he started to turn on the TV. He was a little startled when Alexis took the remote, and got everything ready instead.

" _Appreciate_?" Beckett said when she saw what the young woman had searched for. "Do you remember which song that is?" she asked Julia.

The little girl frowned slightly and said, "I… think so," sounding a little frustrated with herself.

"You'll be reminded right now," Castle said as the music video began. He quickly read, " _31-08-3136_. I think that's supposed to be August 31st, 3136."

"Is that the future?" Julia asked hurriedly. When he nodded she wriggled in excitement and turned her attention back to the screen as Castle read, " _The Museum of Man_ ," that came up after the date. Her eyes went a little wide as a tall, white robot came into a hallway, looking at some displays with real people, frozen in them, before getting to one with the singer, sitting on a chair with his Hofner in his hands. She held her breath expectantly as the robot turned to him, and Paul strummed the guitar before the song began. "I remember," she cried happily, swaying back and forth in time to the beat. Gasping as he then stood, singing to the robot, she glanced at her mother and Castle, biting her lower lip in excitement as they smiled at her before she whirled her head back to continue watching.

Beckett was finding it hard to watch the music video, having more fun watching Julia as her eyes went wide when the robot pulled Paul from his display, and the people started to come to life, dancing to the music. She wasn't too surprised when the little girl suddenly squealed when there were quick snippets of Paul showing the robot to dance, and eventually showing it playing the guitar with him. "What's that he's playing?" she asked Castle.

"Not sure, I'll look it up when this is finished," he replied, watching the video more than their daughter.

Smiling at that, Beckett slid her arm through his and wrapped it around it before leaning against him. She nearly laughed when Julia made a disappointed sound as all the people in the displays then went back to their tableaus, and Paul was back in place himself, leaving the robot holding his guitar, looking around. "Not bad," she said when the video stopped. "Did anyone eat anything at all?" she commented as they went back to the table to continue breakfast.

"I don't think I did. I was having too much fun watching that; Paul is quite the actor," Martha said.

"And now we know who Newman is," Alexis said to her sister.

"Yeah, Paul said he was his friend, but they just showed the start," Julia said quickly, sitting at her chair.

"It did look like Paul and Newman were bros," Castle said.

Giggling, Julia said, "What does that mean?"

"That they're very good friends," Beckett said. "Your uncles call each other that."

"Oh, like they're brothers?" Julia guessed. When her mother and Castle nodded, she then said, "I liked the photographer."

"That was very sixties," Martha said, amusement in her voice. "That takes me back, though a little too far back, I need to return."

"Okay, then let me say I'm so glad that we're going to see Paul," Castle said as Alexis smiled at her grandmother.

"I can't wait," Julia squealed. "It's gonna be fun! We're gonna be right in front of Paul in the middle now!"

Beckett had to smile at that, and she reached over, squeezing her fiancé's arm, since he'd gotten the tickets the day they'd gone on sale for them and her father as well. "I'm looking forward to it too actually, it'll be great to hear him perform different songs than the last time," she commented.

Castle nodded as his mother and daughter agreed with that, Julia then asking them all what Paul might sing that time. He was quiet though, as he thought about what else he'd been able to set up for the concert, something that had taken some time and also a lot of his connections to prepare and finalize. But everything was ready, and glancing at his and Beckett's daughter, he agreed with his fiancée; he was looking forward to the fifteenth of August immensely.

"Castle? What was Paul playing when-" Julia then started to ask, getting his attention as they went back to eating.

"It's a Ciguitar," Castle interrupted her before she could ask as he remembered what he'd searched on his phone quickly to find out. When he saw her confusion he said, "It's a guitar made out of an empty cigar box."

"Oh, it was pretty," Julia said quickly. She giggled and then said, "I liked when he was dancing with Newman."

"I know, that was funny to see him dancing with a robot," Beckett said. "But you need to eat sweetie."

"Sorry, but they said he was gonna make a video and it took a long time before they made it," Julia apologized.

"I think they needed to, it probably took a lot of effort to make that robot," Castle commented.

"I wanna watch it again!" Julia said before eating a piece of strawberry.

"We'll try to tonight," Beckett promised. "How did you know that there was a video?" she asked Alexis then.

"I subscribed to his channel on YouTube," she answered simply. "They have little clips of concerts, and announcements like for that video's robot that she was talking about."  
"We should join up too, with our accounts," Castle said, squeezing his fiancée's hand.

"We will, but for now, we'd better get going," Beckett said. When Julia had finished up her fruit and trail mix, she gathered the bowls for Alexis and said to the little girl, "Say goodbye to her now since we're going."

"Sure, come here sis," Alexis said, turning to pick up Julia as the little girl ran to her after hearing what her mother had said. "I'll be with Gram to pick you up okay?"

"Kay, thanks for telling me about the video, it was cool!" Julia said eagerly. She hugged her sister around the neck and kissed her cheek before Alexis kissed hers. Back on the floor she tried to move her hips the way Paul had, and giggled when Martha held her hands away from her body to help her. "I can't wait to go to class too," she said when she had stopped and turned around to face her.

"I know, it feels like it's been too long," Martha said, kneeling down to hug and kiss her. "You'll have to tell me how things go as we're going to the class."

"Tonight's your date isn't it?" Castle asked as he took Julia's hand to take her to the entry closet to get her shoes. "Second one in two nights, you must like this guy."

"Oh please Richard, he's amusing, but don't start thinking I'm going to let him near my granddaughters just yet," Martha said, waving her hand as she went to the stairs. "Have fun at work."

"See you tomorrow morning if we don't see you before the date," Castle said quickly.

"Bye Martha," Beckett said, helping Julia with her shoes. "Okay, you're all set," she said once the tennis shoes were tied. "And we're ready to go, once you have your backpack."

"I left it upstairs, I'll get it!" Julia cried before turning and running up the stairs.

Since Alexis had followed Julia upstairs, Castle turned to his fiancée and pulled her close to him, kissing her deeply on the lips. "Since we can't once we step outside the door," he explained breathlessly when she broke off the kiss a little quickly.

"Right, sorry," Beckett said, feeling her cheeks heating up a little at her reaction; though she hadn't been expecting Castle to kiss her like that.

"It's-" he began to say before she kissed him, and hard. He groaned once, the sound muffled by her lips, and then wrapped his arms tightly around her as he tried to hold her as close as he could.

Luckily for the two, Julia jumped onto the first stair down, and they parted quickly, not realizing though she and Alexis had seen them. The little girl shared a smile with her sister, and she hugged Alexis one last time before saying, "Now I'm ready."

"Okay, let's go," Beckett said, taking her hand. After they'd said a final goodbye to Castle's daughter, they left, and were in a cab heading to Julia's school. There they had to take her to the auditorium, since another class was going with them. "I think you're set," she was saying as she looked into the backpack to make sure everything was there. "You have lunch, and your hat, sunscreen; you're ready to go."

"Good, I wanna see the horsies. There's Celia! I have to tell her about the video and Paul and Newman!" Julia said excitedly when she saw her friend stepping into the auditorium with her parents.

"Hold on, say goodbye before we go," Beckett said quickly. She smiled when Julia jumped into Castle's arms and he swung her legs out, making her giggle.

"Will I see you tonight?" Julia was asking him.

"Of course, but it might be like last night, just a little bit late," Castle replied as they hugged. He kissed her cheek and then handed her over to her mother saying, "But we'll be there to tuck you in."

"He's right sweetie, we will," Beckett said, using the same low tone of voice that he'd used. "But we'll miss you, and we love you so much."

"I love you too Mommy," Julia said, reaching over her mother's shoulder and waving at Castle.

"Okay, have fun," Beckett said, smiling before she set her down. She watched as Julia ran to her friend and they began to speak. Since she and Castle had to go in that direction, they heard their daughter saying, "And then Newman pulled him through the stuff that was like water, and they walked around the museum together, they danced and the people that were frozen danced too and…" They waved to the little girl, and then left, heading to the sidewalk outside the gates where they stood together in the place they thought would give them the best privacy before she spoke first. "I should go," she told him, looking at her watch.

"I know, a part of me doesn't want to let you go though," Castle said. "But there's nothing to worry about."

"Absolutely nothing," Beckett said, reaching up and just barely brushing her fingertips against his cheek before he took her hand. They squeezed each other's tightly, briefly, before she said, "I'll see you at work."

Castle didn't think anything needed to be said, they already knew what each other was thinking, so he only squeezed her hand a second time; her responding squeeze back making him smile slightly; and he then watched her go. He turned and went in the opposite direction of his fiancée who was hailing a cab, and went to the bookstore they frequented when they had the time around the school, his thoughts going to her even when he glanced back over his shoulder for a second, seeing she was gone.

* * *

_Lift up your head_

_And remember what your life is_

_Don't have to throw it all away_

Beckett wasn't sure why she was remembering those first lines of the song from earlier that morning, but as she sat, letting the polygraph tester wrap the cuff around her arm she couldn't stop it. It was also keeping her calm, so she decided to not try and fight what was helping her before the woman; who'd introduced herself as Evelyn Coday spoke.

"I'll be asking a few base questions," she said. "And then will be asking questions provided for me by Lieutenant Serrano. Are you ready?" When Beckett nodded in response once, Coday sat behind her, looking at the computer screen where the graph was at zero. "Is your name Katherine Beckett?" she began with.

The beginning questions were simple, except for the last one, the woman asking her, "And have you ever mistreated your daughter," Beckett became a little shocked at that and just barely stopping herself from tearing off the cuff and storming out of the room. The IA investigator was in the room though, with the woman at the computer, so she simply said, "No," but her voice was controlled, her jaw clenched tightly in her anger.

"Alright, I apologize for that last question," Coday said, glancing at Serrano. "We're going to begin with the questions the detective has for you. Were you the lead investigator on the Wilder case one week previous?"

As she was asked questions that lead up to the point where she'd been alone in the apartment with Wilder, Beckett felt a little strange, as if there was someone else speaking for her, answering each time. She felt slightly humiliated at first, that with her career anyone would go along with the investigation into her actions thinking there could be any evidence that she would kill someone for no real reason. But she suddenly thought of her daughter and her fiancé, the night before coming to mind and their time playing UNO. It helped calm her down, and she had to wonder if that was helping with her stress at all.

"Last question," Coday said, wondering if Serrano really thought the detective was a cold blooded killer as the rumor was going around that she was. Shaking her head slightly, she finally said, "Did you ever touch the gun that Rosalyn Wilder held?" At Beckett's no, she ended the test, and saved the graph before getting up.

"When will I know the results?" Beckett asked as Coday took off the cuff on her arm.

"I'll contact Captain Gates," Serrano said simply.

Beckett hesitated, since she knew they could determine quicker than that, and Coday shook her head and said, "You passed, your stress levels were normal. Except for the question about your daughter. Again, I apologize."

"Though we'll take that-" Serrano began.

"I know Lieutenant," Beckett interrupted him. "That's doesn't mean I'm cleared." She nodded to Coday, smiling slightly at the woman so she wouldn't think she was angry at her for that question, and then left, going down to the fourth floor. She went to her desk, seeing that Ryan and Esposito weren't there yet. Setting down her bag at her desk, she went to the break room, and sat at the table, covering her face with her hands.

"Kate?" a whisper nearly made her jump. "Sorry," Castle said, touching her shoulder briefly. "Okay?"

"I passed, but we're not out of the woods yet of course," Beckett said, breathing out shakily.

"What is it?" Castle asked, wondering why she was so upset, starting to get a little worried.

"One of the test questions they asked was if I'd ever mistreated Julia," Beckett said. "I nearly ran out of the room I was so upset. Why does everyone suddenly think I would do that to her?"

"I don't know," Castle said, a little startled himself at that coming up again. "But if they talk to Julia again, they'll see you're a great mother." He then realized something and asked, "Would they talk to her psychiatrist?"

"They will," Beckett said with a sigh. "I forgot to tell you yesterday when the case worker talked to me; she mentioned she needed to talk to Doctor Henley, so I'm sure they've done so already."

"That's great actually," Castle said. "She'll vouch for you, she talks to Julia alone a lot, so she would notice if anything was wrong at all."

"I know, so hopefully they'll stop trying to find a reason to take her away from me before the investigation finds that Wilder killed herself," Beckett said. They were quiet for a moment before she said, "It doesn't make any sense though. Why would they be trying to do that?"

"It is weird," Castle agreed. "You couldn't ask why though."

"No," Beckett said, as he'd ended that in a slight question. "But they won't find any proof if they think I have harmed our daughter at all. Is that coffee for me?"

Castle was a little startled at her sudden question, and he looked over his shoulder before he realized she just wanted the drink. "I'm thinking I should have added something a bit stronger in there before coming," he said, sliding one of the two coffee cups in front of him over to her.

"Better you didn't," Beckett said after she'd taken a sip. "I need to keep focused, if I slip up… I don't need them using that against me; either IA or Child Services."

"Yo Beckett," Esposito said, coming up to the doorway. "You finished?"

"I passed," Beckett said, looking over his shoulder at Ryan who'd stepped up behind him. "How are we on our case?"

"We have the security footage," Ryan said. "I was going to head over there to watch."

"We'll join you," Beckett said. "Since at the moment we have nothing else we need to do more than that." She walked after Ryan and Esposito, seeing the latter looking back at her. "What?" she finally asked once they were in front of the TV.

"You okay?" Esposito asked.

"Yeah, it was just a little humiliating to have to do that," Beckett said.

"It is, but you feel a sense of vindication when you pass the test," Esposito said.

Smiling for a moment, Beckett knew that he was trying to let her know he could sympathize with her there, but she then said, "I did, but I'm still being investigated."

"What exactly are they going to look into?" Ryan asked as he was fast forwarding the footage from the club.

"The recording first off," Beckett said. "And they're having Hibbard at the ME looking at the body of Wilder again."

"Who the hell is Hibbard?" Esposito asked. "Because that name sounds pretty familiar."

"You remember our second or third case we did together, the three of us?" Beckett asked, indicating herself, Esposito and Ryan.

"Oh yeah, the kid," Esposito said in annoyance. "Little prick wouldn't leave Beckett alone," he said to Castle. "He was sloppy, and nearly missed the actual cause of death of our vic."

"We were lucky to catch the killer in that one," Ryan commented.

"And you didn't complain about him?" Castle asked his fiancée.

"Oh she did," Ryan said.

"But what got him in trouble was him not doing his job," Beckett said. "And after his suspension we'd been working with Lanie and Perlmutter pretty regularly, so I talked with the Chief Medical Examiner and there's a notation down at the office to not call on him if there's a body in our jurisdiction. We rarely see him anymore." She saw the relief on her fiancé's face, and she nearly smiled at it before she saw Ryan had played the footage. "Here we go," she said, standing up from the desk she'd been leaning against.

As the four watched, a phone on a desk was picked up by a man they could only see from the back. He then seemed to call someone in, and they spoke on the phone before a third man suddenly came into view, went on the phone and then left. They watched until what they thought was the first man finished his conversation, and then left, hanging up the phone.

"Okay, why are they all wearing the same jacket?" Ryan said.

"Because the club has a uniform," Castle said. "The jacket. Which is weird because I don't think Boodle's in London does that."

"They're trying to be different," Beckett said in suggestion. She then shook her head saying, "How are we supposed to find him if he didn't look at the camera, and we're not even sure which one of those guys was the caller?"

"What about their voices?" Castle asked. When the others looked to him he saw the realization in Beckett's eyes as he said, "We get the list of club members, and talk to the judge's secretary to see if she could ID them by their voices. They have to have voicemail."

"Call the club," Beckett said to Ryan. "And see if there's a way to know when someone was there in the club at the time of the call. If not, I'll get a warrant ready." When he'd left she turned to Esposito and said, "I need you to do something for me. Head to records, and ask if there's any way for you to check out birth certificates." She was slightly surprised when Esposito agreed to that without a word and then started to leave. "Javi," she called as he reached the doorway. "This baby? It's in trouble."

"It's why I'm already gone," Esposito said with a slight nod of his head before he left.

"And us?" Castle asked when they were alone.

"I'll be calling the judge's assistant, to see if she can help us at all," Beckett said. "But all of this is going to depend on Boodle's."

"Then I'm crossing my fingers they'll come through," Castle said as they went out to her desk.

* * *

Sitting in a hallway of the courthouse, outside of Judge Nelson's offices, Beckett looked at the USB stick in her hand and said, "I'm hoping she gets here."

"Yeah, that's all we'd need, something happening to our witness," Castle said, stepping back to her. "Or would you call her an ear witness."

Beckett was about to respond to that when she looked down at the hall, seeing the secretary walking down to them. "Mrs. Renaud?" she asked.

"Yes, I'm sorry, Judge Nelson needed some papers that he'd forgotten for his trial," Renaud said quickly. "Come inside, please."

"We have the voicemail messages of the three men that may have been talking to you," Beckett said as they walked into the woman's office outside the judge's. "You can take as much time as you need listening to these, there's no rush as we'd like you to be absolutely sure about who it is."

"Of course," Renaud said, getting some headphones from a desk drawer. At Castle and Beckett's looks she said, "I stay late some nights, this cancels out the noise of them vacuuming here and in the judge's office." She took the USB stick Beckett handed her, and began listening to the voicemail messages each man had at his office where he worked or cell phone.

Tugging on Castle's sleeve to pull him out of the office, Beckett closed the door behind them saying, "Better she doesn't have us breathing down her neck by watching her."

Nodding, Castle leaned against the wall next to her as she checked her phone, asking her, "Anything?"

"No, I'm checking to see if the counselors sent me a text," Beckett said.

"I doubt they'd bother her again," Castle said. "Not after they've done it the first time."

"After that question earlier, I wouldn't be surprised if they try to surprise us like that a second time," Beckett said. She received a message then, and she quickly read it saying, "Espo's just leaving the hall of records, but they turned him away."

"So what will he do now?" Castle asked, watching her text their partner back.

"Help Ryan in checking on the three men we're suspecting at the moment," Beckett replied before she heard the door to the office open.

"I'm only able to narrow it down to two men Detective," Renaud said when they'd entered her office. "The last two, they sound too much alike for me to be able to differentiate between them. Plus they say the word right the same way as the man I talked to said."

"Thank you for your help," Beckett said, taking back the USB stick and note. She and Castle then left, going down the steps to save time as they rushed out to her car with their new information in hand.

* * *

"Okay, so Frank Baird," Ryan said, walking up to the murder board where Castle and Beckett were standing. "He's thirty six, and is a lawyer, small claims."

"How tall is he?" Beckett asked.

"Two inches shorter than the guy in the security footage at the hospital," Ryan answered.

"It could be two of them working together," Castle reminded them.

"And there's Stephen Pritchard," Ryan continued, putting a picture up on the board. "He's thirty, and is a doctor, but not at Lexington, at Manhattan General. He's a pediatrician."

"Okay, at this point, I think I'll agree with Castle, the height is a moot point, we need to just talk to these two, see what they say. Espo," Beckett called. "Your guy?"

"Yeah, Barry Stein's a doctor too, but in Montclair in Jersey, a cardiologist, he's forty two years old, and the day after the call he left for a trip to Africa," Esposito said, walking over to them.

"So we'll have to put him aside for now," Beckett said. "Alright, you two take Baird, we'll talk to Pritchard."

* * *

Walking down the hallway of the apartment building where their person of interest lived, Castle looked around and said, "What about here?"

"Here what?" Beckett asked. She then realized what he was talking about and said, "To live?" When her fiancé nodded she shook her head and said, "Too far from Julia's school."

"Forgot about that," Castle said.

"Yeah, we need to stay as close to Central Park as we can get," Beckett replied.

"What if I bought an apartment for my mother?" Castle suggested.

"I think she'd be pretty angry, and justifiably, it's like you're shipping her off to make room for us," Beckett said, shaking her head as she looked at the letters next to each door. "We'll find a place Castle, just give it some time."

Nodding, though there wasn't all that much time left until they were trying to get married, Castle slowed down a little behind Beckett as he saw they were near 20N. He watched her knock, but there was no sound of someone walking up to the door. "Soundproof?" he asked, since there had been one case where Esposito had nearly broken down the door to a witness' soundproofed apartment before the man had opened the door.

"Could be," Beckett said, waiting. She knocked again, louder that time and with her fist calling, "Mr. Pritchard?"

"Wait," Castle said, hearing the sound of something crashing inside. When there was a second crash, not as loud that time, he said, "He's trying to get out the fire escape."

Motioning him back, Beckett kicked the door as hard as she could, which flew open immediately. With her gun at the ready, she walked inside and turned a corner into the family room from the entry as her fiancé came up behind her.

What Castle and Beckett saw made them stop abruptly as Pritchard was above them, his legs slightly kicking as his head hung down in the noose tight around his neck. His eyes were wide as he saw them, and they began to roll back into his head as the choking sound of his lungs struggling for air echoed in the room.


	10. Substitute Me For Him

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The title of this chapter is a lyric from the song Substitute by Pete Townshend and performed by The Who.

Running to the knocked over ladder underneath the man, Beckett told Castle, "Hold his legs for me." She climbed up the steps, pulling out the pocket knife that she carried with her backup piece. Though it was small, it was sharp, and she was able to open it with a flick of her wrist, slicing through the rope in one move.

Grunting as the man fell limp against him, Castle couldn't stop their fall to the floor, getting Pritchard off of him, and taking the noose off his neck. "Better call 911," he said, looking up from the purple bruises.

Dialing on her phone, Beckett watched as her fiancé took the man's pulse, and nodded up at her once. "Yes, this is Detective Beckett with the NYPD; I need an ambulance at 3156 North Amsterdam. I have a person here who has attempted suicide by hanging, he is unconcious," she told the dispatch on the other end who answered.

"Anything we should do?" Castle asked after Beckett had told the person on the other end the condition Pritchard was in and what apartment they were at.

"No, don't move him, they'll be here," Beckett said, covering the mouthpiece of her phone. "Yes, we were here to speak with him… the rope he used is about three, four inches thick. No he wasn't there long, but he had it tight enough to bruise, they've formed rapidly. Okay…"

Staying kneeling next to the man, Castle was looking up at his fiancée, and jumped slightly when he felt Pritchard's arm slam into his side, making him shy away from him. "Mr. Pritchard?" he said as the man coughed hard once and then began to yell, almost kicking at Beckett if she hadn't stepped out of the way in time.

Leaning down to help her fiancé restrain the man as he was thrashing around on the ground, Beckett had dropped the phone, and she could thinly hear the 911 dispatcher calling out to her to see what was wrong. "He's come out of unconsciousness, and either having a seizure or he's going crazy!" she called in the direction of her phone. She just barely heard the man on the other end saying the ambulance was almost there. They managed to get a hold of his arms and legs and were holding him steady as he stopped yelling, looking up at them. "I'm with the NYPD," she said, surprised when as soon as she'd said that, Pritchard immediately stopped moving. "Can you talk?"

Not surprised when the man just closed his eyes and slumped to the ground, Castle said, "I would assume that's a yes but not right now." He and Beckett stood up since Pritchard hadn't moved again and he said, "You always carry that knife?"

"Since before we met," Beckett said simply as she picked up the phone. "I hear the EMTs now," she said, as she'd heard the sound of a stretcher being pushed down the hall outside the apartment.

"Remind me not to piss you off so much you use that maneuver with the knife on me," Castle commented as she went to the door.

"I don't think you'll need reminding," Beckett said, a slight smirk on her face for an instant. "We're in here," she said to the two men coming towards her as she stepped into the hall. "He's conscious, and he was yelling, struggling against us but he's calmed down. He thought we were there to harm him I'm assuming." Once the two were checking on Pritchard, she took out her phone and called Esposito when she suddenly heard running down the hall. She began to reach for her gun, but hesitated for a second before their partners ran inside.

"What happened to Baird?" Castle asked.

"He was in DC for a seminar, just got back today, so he's not the killer, and he's back at the station to talk to the sketch artist about the man that had him, Pritchard and Stein try the phone," Esposito said, glancing at the EMTs.

"He was trying to hang himself when we came in," Beckett said. "Apparently someone was after him, does it say there?" she asked her fiancé as he looked at the kitchen table where she noticed a single sheet of paper.

"No, it just says that he loves his parents and brother and tells them not to mourn him," Castle said, reading the suicide note.

"Okay, why are you two here?" Beckett asked.

"We heard the name Pritchard over the radio, tried to contact the dispatcher but we weren't able to go through," Ryan said. "They said something about a detective being hurt; I'm assuming the static messed up the transmission."

"It did, I'm fine," Beckett said. "We'll need an officer to guard him while he's in the hospital."

"You think he's at risk?" Esposito asked as they watched the EMTs take Pritchard out on the stretcher.

"I believe so," Beckett said as they left the apartment. "We'll follow him to the hospital to try and talk to him there. I'd like you two to head back to the station, as soon as you get the sketch from Baird send it to me if we're not back."

"Got it, and also tech managed to recover the footage from the Indian restaurant," Ryan said as he looked at the text he'd gotten on his phone then.

"Could they find who it was that hacked the system?" Castle asked.

"No, but they recovered it, it's not in the best quality apparently, but at the time when Charlton would have been alone, there's a figure coming out of the men's bathroom. They're trying to clean it up more now, but they have some footage," Ryan said as they went down to the lobby in the elevator. "I'll take a look at it when we get back."

"Beckett," Castle said suddenly. "The word hacked made me think of something."

"What exact… the hospital records…" Beckett said, realizing what he meant before trailing off. "Espo-"

"Yeah, I'll take a look into it. But are you sure Pritchard can even talk?" he interrupted before asking.

"He can talk, but whether or not he will to us is a good question," Beckett said. "Especially since he knows already he's in danger, enough that he wanted to kill himself. Let's hope he knows who it is that's a threat."

* * *

"He's recovered from the near strangulation, but I would warn you Detective, he's not exactly friendly," the doctor at the hospital where Pritchard had been taken told Beckett and Castle as she led them through the room to the bed the man was on. "He's been yelling to make sure the officer you assigned to protect him is nearby."

"So he can speak," Castle stated.

"He can, and can yell as well," the doctor said. "I would ask you don't set him off again though, or the patients in this room will never be able to rest."

"Thank you Doctor," Beckett said before she parted the curtain covering the end of the bed.

"You're the detective?" Pritchard said as soon as Castle and Beckett stepped into the room the curtains made.

"I'm Beckett and this is Mr. Castle, my partner," she said simply in response. "We'd like to speak with you if we can Mr. Pritchard."

"No kidding," he said sarcastically. "Look, I'm grateful that you saved my life, but what the hell am I supposed to do now?"

Sharing a looking with his fiancée, Castle began saying, "Well, the NYPD will pro-"

"You can't protect me," Pritchard snapped. "Not when Carlos Vanzetti is after me."

"The second in command of the Bandini crime family?" Castle asked in surprise.

"Yeah, I bet big at this card party I was at, and lost to him, lost big," Pritchard said. "If I hadn't taken care of things myself, then I'm a dead man when his cronies get a hold of me."

"How much do you owe him?" Beckett asked, not sure about the story.

"A hundred grand," Pritchard said.

"So high stakes I'm guessing," Castle said. "You know, your place was pretty nice, you have some things you could sell to raise the money. And your paycheck?"

"I can't sell my things! Are you crazy?" Pritchard snapped before he saw the looks that Castle and Beckett were giving him. He slumped back on the bed and said, "Yeah, guess I could, but… yeah."

"Okay, so now that that's settled, I'm wondering if I can ask you about Friday evening, the twentieth," Beckett said. "You were at your club, Boodle's?"

"By the way, I'd sell my membership there to help out with that debt," Castle said quickly before Beckett gave him a look and he quickly stopped talking. "Sorry."

"He's right," Pritchard said. "But what about on Friday?"

"Did anything strange happen that day?" Beckett asked, wanting him to say the same story Baird had given Ryan and Esposito without any prompting.

"Oh, yeah, yeah, that son of a bitch!" Pritchard groaned, burying his face in his hands.

The man muttered a few more obscenities about whoever he was talking about, and Beckett finally had to ask, "Mr. Pritchard?"

"Yeah, sorry, there was this guy, he was new to the club, and he called me and two other members over to him and said he'd pay us to help him with this phone prank," the man said. "I needed the money, and the other guys were eager to help too."

"How much did he offer?" Castle asked.

"Two grand," Pritchard said.

"And it didn't strike you as odd that he'd be offering so much for a simple prank?" Beckett asked. "Or the other two men?" she then asked as Pritchard just gave her a look.

"No, that happens at Boodle's, well, it's usually got to do with betting, but once in a while you'll get some kind of money dealing with a prank. So we agreed and all he had us do was to pick up the phone in the back; the one that's white, and just pretend to talk for a little before we switched," Pritchard said.

"There was a phone call made at the end of that prank," Castle said. "Who was the one on the phone?"

"One of the other two guys, the man that was going to pay us told him what to say, cancel some wedding ceremony," Pritchard said. "That was the prank, he was going to joke with his friend who was the groom about it, and then reschedule it."

Feeling her phone shaking in her pocket, Beckett pulled it out and saw that the sketch had been completed. "Mr. Pritchard, do you remember what this man looked like?" she asked.

"Sure," the man said. When she held out her phone he looked at the sketch on the screen and nodded saying, "That's the mother f-"

"Did he give you his name?" Beckett asked before he could continue with that.

"No, I wish I'd gotten it, 'cause the bastard never paid me. I went back to the club this Sunday, and that guy had a stolen membership card that we use to get into the building," Pritchard answered. "But he left the card in the club the one time he was there, so the people in charge couldn't really do much."

"Do you know these two people?" Beckett then asked, showing the pictures of their two vics. When the man shook his head after studying them closely, she said, "Alright, thank you for your help," with a nod.

As the two turned to go, Pritchard said quickly, "Hey, I'll get that money together, but you gotta make sure I can get it to Vanzetti before he kills me," his voice heavily panicked.

"Officer Taylor? Remain here until Mr. Pritchard is released and escort him to his home, I'll have another officer there to relieve you," Beckett said simply. She closed the curtain behind them as the man on the bed was thanking her repeatedly and shook her head saying, "I have to wonder if the man knew what Pritchard was facing from Vanzetti," to Castle as they left the ward.

"I was thinking that too, I wonder if Baird and Stein had a reason to take that two grand," he said. "And he probably didn't pay them either."

"Considering that he left the card he stole, I don't think he was going to come into contact with those men again," Beckett said. While they were in the elevator she said, "Does it strike you as odd that they went to this trouble just to cancel the ceremony?"

"It does, but then again, having these three men to talk to delayed us; even though Stein was cleared pretty quickly," Castle said. "They're going to great lengths to cover their tracks."

"Great being the keyword, something about this baby…" Beckett said, shaking her head before they stepped out into the lobby. Since she was parked at the curb down the block from the hospital, they walked to it, her phone in her hand to get an officer to be at Pritchard's apartment once he was released from the hospital. She had finished the call and was just hanging up when it began to ring immediately in her hand. "It's Esposito, he must have found something," she said to her fiancé as they stopped walking.

Watching as she spoke to their partner, Castle was a little startled when she suddenly said, "What? Right, we'll be there right away." "What'd they find?" he asked.

"It's not at the station, it's in an apartment, another body," Beckett said simply before they headed to her car, their strides quickened by the news.

* * *

"Meet Ethan Younge," Ryan said as Castle and Beckett walked into the apartment. "He's thirty years old, and lives here alone. Cause of death is a single slit to the throat."

"Like our first vic," Beckett said, nodding. "Time of death?"

"Early this morning, I'd put it in between four and six," Lanie said, looking up from the stretcher where the vic's body was. "And it was the same quick sweep; the angle of the cut is telling me your killer's likely the same height as Mr. Younge here."

"Any signs of a break in, or struggle," Beckett asked, looking around.

"The door was jimmied open," Esposito said, nodding over to it. "Far as we can tell, the vic started to run for his phone there on the counter in the kitchen when he was grabbed and cut."

"Which explains where the pattern's undisturbed, he was sliced from behind," Castle said, looking at the fan shape of blood near the kitchen. "CSU getting anything?"

"Not at the moment," Ryan said. "Espo's heading out to do a quick canvas, I'll join him if you want me to."  
"I'd like you to stay here, we'll be heading back to the station soon," Beckett said. "I'm wondering though, what's this guy's connection to the other two vics we have?"

"What does he do?" Castle and Beckett suddenly said at the same time.

"He's a stenographer," Ryan said. "And he was the current stenographer at the trial that Judge Nelson was presiding over."

* * *

"Okay, so talking to the vic's mother," Beckett was saying after she'd hung up the phone on her desk. "He was acting strangely since Friday evening."

"Friday again," Castle pointed out.

"Yeah, I noticed that too," Beckett said, nodding. "But she wasn't able to find out what was wrong, he wouldn't tell her. He just said it was something he needed to look into and when he had, he'd let her know."

"So there's a connection now between these three, the courthouse," Castle said, standing up and going to the murder board.

"More specifically, Judge Nelson," Ryan said, walking up to them. "Just finished looking into Mr. Younge, and he knew the judge when he was a kid. They were old family friends. In fact, it was Judge Nelson that got Mr. Younge his job."

"We need to talk to the sec-" Beckett started to say.

"I did, she confirmed that they knew one another, once in a while our vic would come in and have lunch with him. But, he's not permanently at that courthouse," Ryan said.

"What? He's on loan?" Castle asked in surprise.

"To a degree, this Burbage case, the lawyer for the defendant demanded a completely clean courtroom, including a stenographer," Ryan explained. "Our vic was the only one who hadn't been in one of her many trials for DUIs or that hit and run she had once."

"Okay, so we've looked into Nelson," Beckett said. "But we nothing has come up."

"Maybe the killer and whoever his partner is are trying to throw us off," Castle suggested. "Making us try to think there's something about the judge we need to look into instead of trying to find them."

Ryan and Esposito looked at Beckett then, and then glanced at each other seeing that she seemed to be thinking that over. "Uh, so what should we do now?" Ryan asked when she didn't say anything.

"I think he's right," Beckett told him. "But there's still something about the judge, Castle. Not dealing with the killer, but…"

"Something else," Castle continued for her. "You're right; it might have something to do with why he was acting strangely."

"Did CSU find anything at his apartment that might explain that?" Beckett asked.

"No, but there was a tablet, and we sent it to tech, they'll look and see if there's anything, they should be done pretty soon," Esposito said. "Canvas didn't turn up anything; no one heard anything on the floor of the apartment."

"What about the floor below?" Castle asked.

"I asked, but they were all asleep," Esposito said. He was going to say more, but his phone rang and he answered it, talking to the person on the other end before quickly hanging up. "They're sending some pictures and notes they found to me," he told the others before heading to his desk.

Looking over his shoulder as he opened a file in an e-mail, Beckett looked at Castle and said, "The judge?"

"Why would he be taking pictures of his friend," Castle said. He then said, "Do they know when those pictures were taken?"

"Saturday until yesterday evening," Esposito said, looking at the information with the pictures.

"The day after Friday," Castle said to his fiancée.

"Yeah, what else was there?" Beckett asked.

"A schedule of his movements," Esposito said. "Well, an attempt to get them down."

"A lot of gaps," Castle said, looking at the typed document that the detective was scrolling through.

"Well, considering it was the weekend, not much he would be able to get," Beckett said, since the entries mostly involved the judge going to stores or cafés.

"Here's where the judge talked to you guys," Esposito said, pointing it out on the screen. "After that there's a blank though."

"And the next thing on the list?" Beckett asked.

"Dinner at a place by the courthouse," Esposito read.

"Okay, the judge is probably in the courtroom right now," Beckett said, looking at her watch. "So we'll have to wait to speak to him. But Castle and I will go to his office, talk to his secretary again and see what's going on with the honorable judge that his friend would feel the need to put him under surveillance."

"Not so honorable if that's the case," Castle said as he followed Beckett to the elevator.

* * *

Walking down the hall to the judge's office, Beckett slowed down for a fraction of a step when she saw that there was a security guard in front of the door. Her pace speeding up then, she called out, "What happened here?" showing her badge to the woman.

"Detective Beckett?" a voice called from inside before the guard could say anything. The secretary came up to the door and then said in relief, "Oh thank goodness, I was going to call you, but I've been trying to help the police here figure out what's going on."

"What is going on?" Castle asked as they looked past the woman to see a man sitting handcuffed to a chair.

"It's the judge… at least, I think it's the judge," Renaud said hesitantly as the man looked up at them.

"Who are you?" Beckett asked, seeing the man didn't have the cut on his forehead that had been healing when they'd met him.

"I'm Judge Thomas Nelson," the man said, sounding irritated. "I'm not sure what's going on here, but I-"

"Hold on, let me try and get things settled before I hear your story," Beckett said, interrupting the man before she turned to the officer that was coming out of the judge's office. "Are you the responding officer?"

"I am, you're Detective Beckett?" the woman; whose name plate read Wyatt; asked.

"Yes, we came here yesterday and spoke with the judge," Beckett replied.

"I was-" the judge began.

"Excuse us," Beckett said, not wanting the man to get enough for a cover story. She followed Wyatt out into the hall and once Castle had closed the door behind them said, "We came here to see him and he was here, we spoke to him about a marriage ceremony he was supposed to perform this weekend," she told the woman.

"And did he look like the judge?" the officer asked.

"Yeah, we saw his picture when we were looking into him for our homicide investigation," Beckett said. "He looks the same as the man in there claiming to be the judge."  
"But the judge had a healing cut along his forehead, right here down into his hair," Castle said, motioning with his hand.

"What's his story?" Beckett asked, nodding to the door.

"He claims he's the actual judge," the officer said. "And that he was on vacation sailing along the coast from Friday until last night when he went back home. He came in this morning, preparing to start the Burbage trial and was more than a little shocked to discover that it's been going on since yesterday. More so when his secretary called us telling us he was an imposter."

"Okay," Beckett said slowly. "Anything else?" When Wyatt shook her head no she then asked, "Do you mind if we talk with him?"

"Yeah, go ahead, but I'll be there to hear what he says," the officer said.

Back inside the secretary's office, Beckett said, "You say you're Judge Nelson sir, I'm finding that a little hard to believe," as she pulled the other desk chair up to the man and sat across from him. "Because my partner and I have spoken to him, and he wasn't you."

"Though he looked a hell of a lot like you. Do you have a twin?" Castle asked.

"I had a sister, but she passed away about three years ago," the man said irritably. When he saw Castle and Beckett were looking at Renaud for confirmation of that, he snapped, "I am Nelson. Whoever you were speaking to had to be an actor in makeup."

"Alright, then why don't you tell us about Friday, anything strange happen here at work to you that day?" Beckett asked.

"Yeah, Nadine didn't remember my vacation, she usually wishes me a safe trip when I sail, but she didn't say a word," the man replied.

"Any reason why you didn't mention that?" Beckett asked Renaud.

"His time off was cancelled," the woman said, looking uncomfortable with everyone looking at her questioningly. "I thought it was strange, but didn't question it because he assured me that he'd be heading out next weekend."

"I'd never sail on the Fourth of July weekend," the man spluttered in his irritation. "Nadine, why would I do that?"

"You said you were going to try it once, your wife was urging you for a cruise then," Renaud said.

"When the judge told you that; that he was going to try and go on a holiday cruise," Castle said. "Did he have a cut on his forehead?"

"Yeah, he did," Renaud said, nodding her head rapidly. "But it was fresh, over the weekend it had healed a little."

"Okay, are his fingerprints in the system?" Beckett asked.

"They are, they recently had all of us employees here at that courthouse submit our fingerprints for security reasons," the man answered for Renaud.

The secretary nodded, and Beckett said to Wyatt, "We'll take him to our Precinct to fingerprint him, and speak with him."

"That'll be the 12th?" the officer asked. At Beckett's yes she then said, "Alright, I'll call your station in an hour, to see who he is exactly. If he is the judge, he's in your custody, but if he's not, I'll have to press charges."

"Understood," Beckett said with a nod before she stood up.

"Do I have to be handcuffed," the man complained as she helped him stand up from the chair.

"I'm afraid so," she said simply as she started to lead him to the door.

"Wait, sir, was there anything else strange about Friday besides your secretary not saying anything about your trip?" Castle asked.

"Well, there was that janitor," the man said. "He was in my office, but they're not supposed to be in our offices unless we call with a specific problem."

"Could you describe him?" Beckett then said.

"Oh sure, he was about six feet tall, had long stringy hair and wore a baseball cap," the man replied. "I was going to ask the head janitor who that was, because I've never seen him before."

"What was he doing when you saw him?" Wyatt asked.

"He was dusting my desk. When I asked him what the hell he was doing, he was speaking Spanish, so I just told him to get out," the man said.

"Then assuming you are the judge, what could be in your desk that would be something to be stolen?" Castle asked.

"I don't know, I have some paperwork for the Burbage case there…" the man said before trailing off.

Waiting while Wyatt went to talk to the CSU team inside looking over the office, Beckett said, "Did they take the paperwork?"

"They did, there's no sign of it," the office replied. "Sir, did you take those papers with you on your cruise?"

"He wouldn't," Renaud answered before he could. "He would never risk paperwork like that falling overboard. He keeps everything here."

"Okay, let us know if they find any foreign fingerprints in there," Beckett told Wyatt. "Come on sir."

Castle walked next to the judge and Beckett before saying, "Did you have a ceremony to perform this weekend?"

"Wait," Beckett said quickly before the man could reply to that. "I'd like to wait until we get to the station before we talk to him." When her fiancé nodded, they continued down the hall, going out the back entrance to avoid the media on the steps for the Burbage trial, wanting to save face for the man she knew already was the actual judge.

* * *

"Alright, here's the fingerprint," Ryan said, at his desk with the others around him. "And searching… yeah, he's Judge Nelson," he said when the man's picture came up immediately.

"Okay, we'll talk to him, Officer Wyatt will be calling, tell her that the man is the judge, and ask what CSU found in the office. And someone get tech onto the system at the courthouse now to try and see who hacked it to get the judge's time off cancelled," Beckett said before she and Castle went over to interrogation, her notebook in her hand. "Judge Nelson, we are sorry but we just got confirmation that you are who you say you are," she said as they entered the room.

"Great, then who the hell was posing as me?" the judge said, looking relieved.

"We'll be trying to figure that out," Beckett assured him. "But we'd like to ask you a few questions," she said, going around behind the man once her hands were free. She took off his handcuffs, and said, "So you had this trip planned for how long?"

"I take it every year, the weekend before the weekend of the Fourth," Nelson said, rubbing his wrists. "So I guess anyone could have taken advantage of the fact that I was gone. But it seems to have to do with your murder case."

"Yes, and we're aware now why that was done," Castle said, sharing a look with Beckett.

"Do you know these two people?" she asked, putting out pictures of the first two vics.

"Yes, they came to me asking if I would perform a wedding ceremony, this weekend actually, for him and another woman," Nelson said. "Why?"

"They've been murdered," Beckett said. "And we believe they were being followed. So the fake judge was able to tell us pretty much the same thing you told us."

"But why?" Nelson said. He was startled when she didn't answer and instead pushed across a picture of the third vic. "That's… no, it can't be," he said, his voice choking up as he realized quickly why the man's picture was there.

"I'm sorry, but Mr. Younge was found killed in the same manner as our first victim," Beckett said gently.

"What time did you leave the courthouse on Friday?" Castle asked.

"Um, I left… I left at… at… I'm sorry," Nelson said. He cleared his throat and said, "Ethan was like a son to me, my wife and I helped his mother raise him."

"Take your time," Beckett said in understanding.

Nodding, the judge took a moment, and then breathing out deeply said, "I left at two, early because I didn't have any trials or paperwork to worry about. I said goodbye to Nadine and headed back home."

"Okay," Beckett said. "I'd like to take you back a little further, to when you spoke with these two. Do you remember seeing anyone suspicious near them in the hall when you spoke to them?"

"No, I can't say that I have. But I should have been suspicious about these two," Nelson said. "I don't think he even knew who he was getting married to, but it wouldn't have been the first time I'd married a couple because of a baby."

"So you could tell it was because there was a child involved," Beckett commented.

"Yes, I asked them if they were sure about it, especially the woman he was going to be marrying," Nelson said. "And the woman assured me that the mother of the baby wanted to get married to this man. I never got their names though, just Gareth and I think… Sharon?"

"Alright, then let me ask this, were you ever in contact with the woman he was going to marry? Did you ask these two to speak to her?" Beckett asked, knowing it was a long shot.

"No, I'm afraid not, I was going to speak to her on the 28th," Nelson said. "To make sure that she was sure about the marriage. But the man… Gareth, he seemed to be pretty happy. Which is a shame for the baby; she'll never know her father." He saw Castle and Becket exchange a look and he said quietly, "I see, I didn't realize it was that kind of marriage."

"By all accounts he was prepared to be a father to this baby," Beckett said. "I'm going to need to ask you where exactly you were this morning between four and six."

"Is that when Ethan was murdered?" Nelson asked. At their nods he sighed and said, "I was home, with my wife, sleeping, we'd sailed into port late, about two, and we were very tired. I didn't leave my building until about twelve actually, since I had gotten a text from my secretary…" before he suddenly trailed off at that.

"Did you receive any calls or texts this weekend?" Castle asked.

"I… yeah, but nothing dealing with work," Nelson said.

"We'll need your phone to take a look at it," Beckett said. She wasn't surprised when Nelson nodded, looking to be a little in shock. "Did you take this phone recently to be fixed?" she then asked him.

"I did, I was walking down the stairs at the courthouse a week ago, and someone ran into me, it fell and broke," Nelson said.

"Did you see who ran into you at all?" Castle asked.

When Nelson shook his head in response Beckett said, "Well, with that information you're as good as cleared sir, and if you give us time you'll be free to leave."

"Actually, I think you need to check my alibi," Nelson said, looking up at her.

"I already have a feeling you'll be cleared, my colleagues are looking at the footage from the marina you park your boat at, to check and see when you came back to the city," Beckett replied. "Checking on that and your building's footage will be a formality, and that's why I said you need to give us some time to do that." She and Castle then stood and she told the man, "But I'm going to have to place you in holding until you can be released." At the man's nod, Beckett and Castle left the room and headed out to the bull pen where she called, "Anything?"

"Got the marina footage, and I also called Officer Wyatt, she said CSU didn't find anything," Ryan said, stepping out from where he was looking at more security footage. "But she said they found the place completely wiped clean, there were no fingerprints inside the office, only outside in the secretary's office."

"Then I need you to-" Beckett started to say.

"I contacted his building, they're going to send the footage soon," Ryan said. There was a loud tone from his phone and he got it out of his pocket saying, "Soon as in right now."

"Espo," Beckett said, going over to him. "I need you to get this to tech, to see if there's any way someone could hack into his phone to control the calls and texts that he gets," she told him.

"Seriously?" Esposito asked as he took the phone from her.

"Seriously, someone went to great lengths to pose as him," Castle said.

"You think it has to do with that Burbage case he's supposed to be presiding over instead of this baby?" Esposito suggested to them.

"It doesn't," Beckett said shortly. "The trial was proceeding normally, though now they'll likely have to leave the city; Ms. Burbage will still be charged with murder." When he'd left, she turned to Castle and said, "So we know that the judge was fake, and our last vic was following him."

"He must have noticed that was not his friend when he saw him on Friday evening," Castle said. "But are we thinking the same thing?"

"I need to call tech, to see if they've been able to recover anything recently deleted on Younge's tablet," Beckett said as they went to her desk. She made a call to tech, and spoke briefly with them before she was hanging up and looking at her fiancé saying, "There was an extra paper in that document of the fake judge's movements, and a photograph."

Standing behind her as she went onto her computer, Castle soon saw the picture; of an abandoned building. "There's an address I hope?" he said.

"Judge Nelson's alibi checks out," Ryan said, Esposito coming from the elevator behind him. "Beckett?" he asked when she didn't reply. "Uh, Castle?" when he didn't react to him either.

"We need to go," Beckett said as she jumped up from her chair.

"We found out where the fake judge was hiding," Castle explained to Ryan and Esposito as they went into the elevator and the doors closed on them.


	11. All We Know

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The title of this chapter is a lyric from the song Bring on the Lucie (Freeda Peeple) by John Lennon, from his album Mind Games.

Noticing movement out of the corner of her eye, Beckett looked up as her fiancé set down a small cup of coffee on the only clear space next to her. "Should I ask how strong this is?" she asked as she picked it up after murmuring her thanks.

"It's enough to keep you awake, but not all night," Castle said. When she looked at him skeptically he said in a low voice as he sat down in his chair, "You look tired, you should probably get some sleep."

Nodding, Beckett took a sip and then sighed saying, "I'm fine, just getting frustrated at the lack of evidence right now. I mean, we have a scar on the man at the Indian restaurant from the footage."

"A neck scar is going to be a pretty big identifier," Castle commented.

"And we've confirmed that the computer system at the courthouse was hacked to change the judge's vacation. And his phone had a chip in it to let whoever it was manipulate his phone calls. But the thing that bothers me the most is the fact that there was no evidence of hacking in the hospital's system," Beckett said.

"I know, but we're pretty much in agreement that it was our first vic, wanting to hide the mother and baby," Castle said. "But I really wonder if it would have worked."

"It's why I had Ryan look into any recent requests to change names," Beckett said. "But that's another long shot since if we find women who've wanted to do that since last month, we're not going to be able to narrow it down."

"If she even tried to change her name," Castle reminded her.

"Yes, and if she's gone off grid, then it'll be next to impossible to find her," Beckett said, shaking her head. She finished off the rest of the coffee and said, "I need to call Julia, see how she is."

Castle watched her go, and then went to the murder board, looking at everything they had so far. There was something bothering him as he looked at the sketch they'd had made of the fake judge, with the cut on his forehead. Where the man had been going to; to change into clothing that the real Judge Nelson had; was an old apartment on the ground floor of a condemned building. It was only so he could change, and there were also no security cameras or traffic cameras anywhere near it to track the man. Shaking his head, he headed to the break room, walking inside as his fiancée was in the middle of her conversation with Julia.

"Anything?" Beckett whispered when she saw him.

Shaking his head, Castle heard their daughter asking, "Is that Castle?" Stepping closer to his fiancée he said softly, "It is sweetheart, how was it today?"

"I didn't tell Mommy yet so I could tell you too," the little girl said. "And it was soooo much fun! I got to ride a pony for a little bit. Celia did too."

"And the carousel?" Beckett asked, sharing a smile with her fiancé at their daughter's enthusiastic tone of voice.

"That was fun too, but I liked riding the pony more," Julia said. "Oh! I asked if we could see the horsie I rode with you Mommy, and Miss Megan that let you ride it was riding it over the fences."

"So you watched?" Castle said.

"Yeah, and it's so pretty! I told Celia and Johnny I rode it, but they didn't believe me until Miss Megan came over to talk to us," Julia explained. "And then she showed us the dressage and jumping too."

"How was it when you went back to the school?" Beckett asked.

"Fun," Julia replied. "We painted, and I made a painting at home for you, you and Castle later."

"We'll be looking forward to seeing it," Castle commented. "But Julia, tell Alexis I should be coming home soon okay?"

"Kay. Mommy?" Julia asked then.

"I'm not sure sweetie, but we need to go," Beckett said hurriedly. "I'll try to get home as fast as I can. We love you, bye."

"Bye," Castle said quickly as she had since he'd noticed Esposito and Ryan coming over to the room. "Please tell me you found something?" he asked as he took Beckett's cup to the sink to put some distance between them.

"I did," Esposito said. "That bodega paid off, I talked to the owner, and he said a man came in around yesterday evening with another man with straggly hair, matching the picture from the security footage; what we can see of the guy."

"And he looked like the judge?" Beckett asked.

"He didn't but he bought something with a card the owner remembers. But when it was, he has no clue, so we'll get some footage from the store tomorrow. And I'll have the owner come in to give a description, maybe give us a sketch. And he said when the two left, they went west, and there at the corner of Haven and 115th, there's a traffic cam, plus an ATM," Esposito said.

"It's too late to get footage is it?" Beckett said, looking at her watch.

"They'll have it ready for us in the morning," Esposito said.

"And as for the name changes, I'm afraid I didn't find much," Ryan said. "None of them are off the grid, so I don't think this mother changed her name."

"I expected as much," Beckett sighed, nodding her head. "Alright, I think we have everything possible. Unless tech…?" she directed to Esposito.

"I'll stay a couple hours, take a look at the information on the chip that the real judge's phone had," Esposito said. "If they don't have anything still or find nothing, I'll head home."

"Thank you," Beckett said gratefully, since she wanted to go home badly. She then glanced at her fiancé and asked, "Awake at all?"

"No, I'm remembering something about the fake judge," Castle said. "Do you recall his wrist?"

"I… yes, a bracelet," Beckett said, pausing before she remembered. "A medic-alert bracelet. Okay, we can narrow down our fake judge with that, let's just hope he'll tell us who his partner his; who's paying him to do all this."

"Walk you out?" Castle asked as he followed her out to her desk.

"Sure, but I'm in a hurry, Julia was riding a pony," Beckett said, getting her things together in her bag. "And she'll be hyper, maybe too much for Mrs. Parker. Night guys," she said to Ryan and Esposito who were at their desks. "If you get anything Javi-"

"I'll text," Esposito replied.

Nodding to him, Beckett led the way to the elevator and waited until she and Castle were outside the building to say, "We're not too late."  
"No, we got lucky today," Castle said, hailing a cab when they were at the further end of the block from the Precinct. He opened the back door for Beckett, but when she didn't walk past him he glanced over at her and saw she was looking across the street at the next block. "What do you see?" he called.

"What?" Beckett asked, turning to him. "Oh, nothing," she said absently, looking back again but then shaking her head. Since the cab was in the shadows of buildings in the setting sun, she took the opportunity to look at her phone as she laid her head on Castle's shoulder. "My dad texted me," she commented. "About an hour ago, I must have had it under a pile of papers."

"What does he say?" Castle asked. "Or is it a personal message?"

"No, he's asking if he needs to bring anything dressy for the beach house," Beckett said with a smile. "I told him to bring a suit just in case."

"So you still want to go on Thursday and not this Saturday, or Sunday?" Castle asked.

"No, I'd like to spend some time with Julia, remember today was her last day until the seventh," Beckett reminded him. "We could go to the zoos, museums, spend a day in the park and rent bikes to ride with her."

"That's true, she hasn't been on her bike too much lately," Castle said. "Though that last one…" He had to stop as they were at his building, and he hurriedly paid the driver before they went inside. "Anyways, riding bikes we might want to do later in the day."

"I know, I'm aware of how hot it is," Beckett said. "But we could also have a picnic dinner with that."

"We might want to wait to tell her about that," Castle said in amusement as he was recalling then, walking down the hall to his loft. "She'll want to go tomorrow."

Smiling since he was right, Beckett went inside as he held the door open for her and was surprised to see that there was no one in the kitchen or living room. She was about to call out to Julia and Alexis, when she was suddenly turned around, and found herself in Castle's embrace as he kissed her deeply. She nearly pulled away; wanting to remind him they probably weren't alone; but she soon lost that fight, and relaxed slightly against him.

"M-" Julia said, coming down the stairs but stopping abruptly when she saw that her mother and Castle were wrapped up in each other.

Clearing her throat loudly, Alexis fought back a laugh as the two jumped apart and looked up at her in a little shock. "Sorry, but dinner's ready since you're home now," she told them as her sister ran down the stairs the rest of the way.

"Oh sweetie, I'm so happy to see you," Beckett said, lifting Julia up after setting down her bag. She kissed her temple and said, "You missed us?"

"I did, lots," Julia said, nodding rapidly. When she was given to Castle she hugged him and said, "I'm happy you're home, come and see what dinner is, I helped Alexis with it and it's a surprise! A pretty surprise," as she grabbed their hands and dragged them to the kitchen where there were four bowls.

"Salads with… flower petals," Beckett said with a smile.

"I went to the farmer's market three blocks over; a man was selling these to eat. They're farm grown, so they're safe to eat in every way," Alexis said. "And I washed them all twice."

"She did, I saw her," Julia said, nodding.

"They look great," Castle said, heading over to the wine cooler to grab a bottle. "So are you two hungry?" When they nodded he then said to his fiancée, "Kate?"

"Very, and I'm also ready to relax and maybe play a game with our little girl and Alexis after?" Beckett asked. She was a little surprised when the young woman hesitated and asked, "Another blind date?"

"No, Edith wants to go out again tonight, but just for some _crêpes_ down the street at nine and just her and me," Alexis said.

"That's fine, you're having dinner with us," Castle said.

"I told her that too," Julia said as she followed her mother over to the table.

When they were all gathered around in their chairs, Beckett said, "Now you can tell us more about your day sweetie. In more detail since Castle can hear too."

Nodding eagerly, Julia proceeded to tell them about their day until they were cleaning up the dishes and she said, "Can we watch the music video again before we play?"

"Really quickly," Castle said as Beckett nodded at the same time. "And once we finish with the dishes."

"Come here Julia, we'll choose the game while they're doing that," Beckett said, taking her hand and going into Castle's office. As Julia was looking at her games she couldn't resist, leaning down and kissing the top of her daughter's head. She was pleased when the little girl turned to her and they shared a quick kiss before they looked through the games together, deciding on the Clue Jr. game before going to the doorway too see if Castle and Alexis were ready.

"You know, I had that song stuck in my head all day," Alexis commented as they settled on the armchairs, Julia sitting on her lap.

"Me too, I told Celia about it, and Johnny too, they wanna see it now," the little girl commented before the music video began.

That time Castle was watching Julia, not surprised to see that his fiancée was doing the same. He squeezed her hip gently, since she was also on his lap, and when the video had finished he commented, "I'm thinking I might need to get a couch in here."

Beckett glanced at him, and when he looked at her with a confused expression she shook her head slightly. "Okay, so now I think we're ready to start our game," she said after he realized what she was thinking of. "Why don't you two set it up for us?" she asked their daughters. When they'd gone she said, "I almost forgot this weekend, well, Saturday."

"I completely forgot," Castle said. "Do you still want to go look?" he asked.

"I would, but how are we going to?" Beckett said.

"Well, Alexis could take Julia somewhere for us," Castle commented after thinking for a moment. "If she doesn't have any plans already. I'm not so sure about that place though."

"Neither am I, but let's give it a shot, and see what there is to the townhouse," Beckett said. "For now, we should go; they're going to wonder what we're talking about."

Following Beckett out into the living room, Castle joined her in sitting on the couch as Julia and Alexis were on the other side of the coffee table. "So who's playing what piece?"

"Do you really need to ask Dad?" Alexis said, giving Julia the blue piece before taking the red.

"Alright, then we should get started," Beckett said. "Though I should ask are the three cards set?"

"They are, and you two need to roll the dice," Alexis commented.

"I got a five and Alexis got seven," Julia said, watching as Castle handed the die to her mother.

When Beckett rolled a twelve, she laughed and said, "Go ahead, but I get the feeling it's just going to be a formality."

Seeing his roll come up on a two, Castle nodded and said, "And you'd be right, you're first tonight."

Since the game was for Julia's age, Castle, Beckett and Alexis tried not to play too seriously, but they also didn't let the little girl win. It took a little longer to play through to the end, but Castle soon won by guessing the correct solution to the crime and when he had, the four looked at each other.

"Should we play another?" Alexis asked, looking at her watch.

"It's early, and you don't have to leave for another two hours," Castle said, looking at the time himself. "So why not?"

"I don't wanna," Julia said quickly before anyone could pick up the game pieces.

"You don't?" Beckett asked in surprise.

"Do you want to go to bed?" Castle asked as the little girl shook her head no. When she stopped and gave him a glare he suddenly started to laugh heartily, making Alexis and Julia look at him.

"What's the joke?" Alexis asked, Julia piping up and saying, "Yeah?"

"You looked just like your mother then, it was a little scary, but so cute," Castle said to the little girl. "Come here sweetheart," he told her, holding his arms out to her. When Julia was on his lap he said, "So what do you want to do then, if you don't want to play another game?" after he'd kissed her temple.

"I don't want to play this one again," Julia said in a matter of fact tone. "I shouldn't have played it 'cause you're not working now Mommy, you shouldn't have to work again."

"Oh believe me sweetie," Beckett said, pausing in helping Alexis put away the game to cup Julia's chin and share a kiss with her. "This is nothing like work, and it's a lot more fun. But what do you want to play instead?"

"I dunno, lemme pick something with Alexis," Julia told them before she started to wriggle to get off of Castle's lap. She smiled when he made her stop and she shared a quick kiss with him before getting down and going to his office with her sister.

"Okay?" Castle asked his fiancée as they leaned back at the same time, watching the two through the shelves.

"I am, bothered by the mother and baby still out there," Beckett said. She opened her mouth to speak when she heard a sudden spatter of water against the windows near them and looked over with Castle to see that it was raining, a flicker of lightning lighting up the night sky outside. "I hope they have some kind of shelter," she said, frowning.

"Looks like they were right about that storm," Alexis said, hesitating when she saw the look on Beckett's face. She was going to take Julia to the coffee table so they could get their game set up, but wasn't surprised when the little girl slipped from her grasp and ran to her mother.

"Okay Mommy?" Julia whispered, climbing onto her lap with Castle's help.

"I'm fine, I was hoping we wouldn't get a storm, not in the mood to enjoy it," Beckett said.

"Is it…" Julia started to say, before she realized what she had almost let slip to Alexis and she closed her mouth hurriedly, looking guilty.

Sighing, Beckett said, "I don't think we should keep this a secret anymore," looking at her fiancé when she said so.

Pulling her closer to him, Castle nodded and proceeded to tell Alexis about the investigation into Beckett at work, but in vague terms so Julia wouldn't hear precisely why her mother was being investigated. He wasn't too surprised when his daughter didn't look all that surprised and said, "You figured something like that was happening?"

"I thought so, but wasn't sure what was the problem exactly," Alexis said. "But… there's no way they'll find that you did anything wrong."

"I don't know," Beckett said. "Because the way things are going, they're trying their best to find something."

"Will you lose your job Mommy? If they do?" Julia asked softly.

"More than likely," Beckett said. "I won't lie, but sweetie, you don't need to worry about it."

"I do, 'cause you should keep helping people," Julia said. Tears then welled up in her eyes, and when her mother and Castle asked what was wrong she sobbed once saying, "But I want you to be safe too."

"It's okay," Beckett said soothingly as she held her close. "I'll be safe either way. But we're not worrying about this you know." She couldn't help laugh softly as Julia looked at her with wide eyes and she leaned down, kissing her forehead. "We're not worrying because if we did that's all we would have time for. But we'd like to focus more on you and our plans we have."

Sniffing once, Julia said, "Are you excited for July?"

"Very, I for one can't wait to go to the Hamptons again, we haven't celebrated the Fourth there for a while," Castle said to Alexis.

"A long while, not since I was a sophomore," she replied with a smile. "But you know your mom's right Jules." When her sister turned to her she said, "Better you not think about that because it'll take over everything like your mom said. Plus, it might hurt you instead of help you."

"Oh," Julia said, thinking that over. She then pouted and said, "Are you trying to be like my doctor?"

"No," Alexis said. "But hey, great if I was, since that's what I want to do."

Julia smiled and gave her mother a quick hug before she kissed her and Castle and then got down, hurrying to her sister and wrapping her arms around her tightly. "Let's show them the game!"

"Mousetrap? Alexis," Castle groaned, sitting up and leaning over to the side.

"Sorry Dad, Gram took us to the toy store during the break she had for the class and we got this," Alexis replied, smiling a little sheepishly.

"I never liked that game, it took forever to set up," Castle said to his fiancée, shaking his head. "But hopefully they've fixed it in the time since we used to play?"

"I don't know, I would think so, if they complained as much as you," Alexis commented.

With that they opened the box, but there were so many pieces that Beckett quickly said, looking at her watch, "Why don't we play a card game and take this to the Hamptons? We could play with Mari and there we'd have more time."

"Kay," Julia said, looking at Alexis. She breathed out a little when her sister put the top back on the box and went over to the office before she hurried after her, grabbing a deck of cards.

"What do you want to play with the Spanish deck, oh, _Cinquillo_ again," Castle said when she handed it to him. "Alright, Alexis?"

"I have time for a couple games probably," she said, coming back and sitting with Julia on the other side of the table.

Shuffling the cards, Castle dealt them out and said, "Five of coins?" to start the game. That game turned into three, before he glanced at his watch saying, "Whoa, you better go, it's eight thirty."

Julia giggled as Alexis jumped up and ran to her room, watching as her mother gathered the deck back together. She stood up and did a few kicks before she realized Castle and Beckett were watching her. "Miss Amber showed us a little bit about the Jive today."

"I can tell, how much did she teach you?" Beckett asked, letting Castle put the deck away.

"Just what you do to kick and flick," Julia replied, doing that a few times. "But it wasn't a lot. She said it was a pre… preview for when we come back to camp."

"Nice of her to do," Castle said sarcastically. "Are you coming back?" he asked as Alexis rushed down the stairs then.

"Yes," she said simply, nearly shoving a book in his hands before she grabbed an umbrella and opened the door. "Think about it Dad. Bye!"

"Wow, that was pretty abrupt," Beckett said, nearly laughing at the consternation on her fiancé's face. "What's the book?"

"India," Castle said, laughing slightly. "The same publishers that made the Spain and Ireland books I gave you," he showed her.

"Oooh, can I see?" Julia asked eagerly. "I think Alexis was thinking about India 'cause we listened to the song Paul sings that's the same name, and she played on her sitar before we made dinner."

"They're both also wearing their _salwar kameez_ ," Beckett reminded them.

"That's true, I should have noticed," Castle commented. "Okay, so we'll take a look at this."

"If we go," Julia said excitedly as they went to the couch. "Can we go to Rishikesh?"

"It depends if it's safe to go to," Castle said. "Here, I'll make some coffee, get her some milk." He started to go to the kitchen before he paused and said, "And don't look at it until I come back."

"Then you should have taken it with you," Beckett teased him. She smiled when he waved his hand over his shoulder at her, and she took Julia to the couch where they sat together. "Though you know sweetie, I'm not sure where the Beatles went is there anymore."

"Where did they go?" Julia asked. "Was it just a hotel?"

"It was an _ashram_ ," Castle said, setting a glass of milk on the coffee table. "Which is where you go to meditate, or learn to meditate like the Beatles did."

"Oh, is it hard to do?" Julia asked.

"A little," Beckett and Castle said at the same time.

Smiling at her fiancé, Beckett turned back to Julia and said, "If we went we would definitely go here," indicating what was on the cover of the book.

"It's pretty, is that the Mahal?" Julia asked.

"The Taj Mahal," Beckett corrected her.

"Hey, I said not to look at the book," Castle said jokingly.

"Like we wouldn't look at pictures on the front and back," Beckett shot back as Julia turned the book over.

"Look, it's Ganesha," the little girl said. "Is that a temple?" she asked, pointing to the picture below it.

"It looks like it, one thing you have to love about their temples there, the details in the carvings and decorations," Castle said as he sat next to Beckett, handing her a mug of coffee. "Now we can look inside." He shared a laugh with his fiancée as their daughter hurried to open the book randomly.

"You don't want to start at the beginning?" Beckett asked.

"No, I want to look at the Taj Mahal," Julia said.

"Here, let me try and find it for you," Castle said, holding his hand out for the book. He was surprised when Julia immediately handed it over, and he started to go through the pages once he'd found the name in the index. "Here we are. Two whole pages, which makes sense, it is one of the wonders of the world," he said, holding the book out towards them so they could see the pages.

"It's beautiful," Julia said. "Look at the fountain here."

"It says it's the Lotus Pool," Beckett said. "But it is beautiful."

"Is it a temple?" Julia then inquired.

"No," Castle said, looking at his fiancée.

"It's a tomb for an emperor and his wife," Beckett explained. "He built it for her in her memory."

Julia looked saddened hearing about that and said, "Why did she die?"

"It doesn't really matter," Castle said. "Why-" He was going to continue, but when Beckett put her hand on his arm he looked at her questioningly.

"Like Castle said, it doesn't matter, what you should see when you look at this, is how much they were in love," Beckett explained; knowing if she didn't turn Julia's attention from the reason for the empress' death she wasn't going to forget about it. "It took a very long time for them to build it. And a lot of care was taken with it; he wanted it to be perfect."

"It is," Julia agreed. "What were their names?"

"Shah Jahan and Mumtaz Mahal," Castle answered. "Want to look at more of the book?"

"Kay," Julia said, studying the book for a moment. She then leaned in and read, "Tw-elve y-ea-rs… years, is that how long it took to make it?"

"It did," Beckett replied. "Good job sweetie. And that's ten, all of your fingers-"

"Plus two more," Julia said. "Wow, that's a lot of Christmases and birthdays." She thought for a moment and said, "He loved her lots didn't he?"

"It's a great love story," Castle said, musing on what he knew about the emperor and his favorite wife. "Especially since-"

"It was a long time ago," Beckett said quickly, thinking he was going to mention the fact the emperor had had more than one wife.

"That's what I was going to say. You know how they met?" Castle asked. When Julia shook her head no, a little smile on her face watching them, he said, "Well, I don't know if it's true, but in a book I read about different marriages of royalty through history it said that the women of the palace held a bazaar, to allow them to go out of the _zenana_."

"What's that?" Julia asked.

"In those days the women inside the palace had to stay there, it was their religion," Beckett said. "But the Flirting Bazaar-"

"You've heard this story?" Castle interrupted her.

"I have, but like you, not sure it's real, since when they were betrothed they were only fifteen and fourteen," Becket answered.

"What's what mean?" Julia asked.

"It basically means engaged, but they didn't have a ring," Beckett explained.

"But everyone knew you were going to get married to that person," Castle said. "But they did call it the Flirting Bazaar, it was an opportunity for the women to go out; but they were heavily veiled so men who were not their family or husbands couldn't see them."

"Shah Jahan went to Mumtaz Mahal's stall, but she was apparently unable to flirt with him all that much," Beckett continued. "And her aunt, Nur Mahal, told her to speak to the emperor's son since he was talking to her, and that he'd think she wasn't smart if she didn't. But he was said to have replied that she didn't need to, that even with her veil, he could see her speak to him with her eyes and he could understand what she said perfectly."

"Wow," Julia breathed, looking stunned. "That's like a poem."

"It is," Castle said. "But we really aren't sure if that's what happened. Even if it didn't though, it's a beautiful story and it does speak to their love."

"Would you be able to do that with Mommy?" Julia asked him.

"Most likely," Castle said. "You know what I'd be able to see no problem though? When she gets mad at me, you can feel that look a mile away."

"And I'll give you one right now Castle, I'm right here," Beckett said, tugging his ear to his laugh.

"Could we go?" Julia then asked suddenly.

"I think we might manage it," Castle said. "We'll go, the six of us-"

"Six?" Beckett asked with a smile.

"Your dad, he's interested in Indian culture isn't he?" Castle asked.

"That's true, my mom used to tease him that he had a kind of clash of the cultures inside his office," Beckett said, recalling with a fond smile. "He had statues of Krishna and Shiva and Parvati, but then had that Lladro of Don Quixote and a Spanish dagger he got in Toledo."

"Nothing wrong with that," Castle said. "And interesting to see, since his office is almost the same now isn't it?"

"Pretty much, except for the stuff he's added," Beckett said, nodding. "But yeah, I think he'd like to go with us. Though you know the monsoons are in the summers."

"I know, but there's not really another time we can go there," Castle commented. "We'd have to take good umbrellas. We'll go though, the six of us, but I think we should go when she's older."

"Why?" Julia whined in disappointment.

"Because we won't need to worry about you so much like we do now," Beckett explained.

"She's right, we want you to spend all day going around without getting tired," Castle said with a nod. "But let's go back to the book okay?"

"What is it?" Beckett asked, watching as he trailed off suddenly.

"No, I was thinking about their children," Castle said. When Beckett shook her head quickly, since one of the emperor's sons had imprisoned his father and killed his brothers to make himself emperor, he hurriedly told her, "Specifically their oldest daughter Jahanara."

"That's right," Beckett said with a slight nod. "That book said a little about her too."

"Like what?" Julia asked. "And is she Alexis?"

"Are you seeing Shah Jahan and Mumtaz Mahal as us?" Beckett asked, amusement in her voice. When Julia nodded she suddenly laughed, covering her mouth with her hand saying to her fiancé, "She gets that from you."

"Gets what?" their daughter asked, looking confused.

"Your daddy found a diary from the 1940's, before your grandmama and grandpapa were born, and when he read it he saw himself as the private eye that wrote it, and then me as the woman he met and fell in love with," Beckett said, keeping her eyes glued to Castle's.

"She's right, I did. And with my luck I slip up and almost let her know I did that by calling the woman her name, but I covered up nicely I think," he replied as Julia was giggling softly.

"Nicely, I knew because I'm not sure how I would have heard a k sound from the word fate," Beckett scoffed.

"You did say Mommy's name," Julia giggled heavily.

"Okay, okay, so I did," Castle said. "But now I can tell her without any repercussions."

"I wouldn't be so sure of that," Beckett teased him. She laughed softly when he looked at her in slight concern, and she leaned over, kissing him gently on the lips before pulling back.

Though he was incredibly tempted to continue that, Castle cleared his throat and said, "Yeah, you know what, I think I could see what she's saying with her eyes behind a veil," though he stared into his fiancée's eyes intently.

"So Jahanara is Alexis?" Julia asked, squirming a little watching them. Though she was a little embarrassed to be there with them while they were sharing that look she knew was one they exchanged when they wanted to be alone, she was happy to see it, since she thought it made them more like the emperor and empress they were telling her about.

"No," Beckett said, she and Castle breaking the look at the same time. "We're not them at all, we're ourselves."

"Then you're in love like they were," Julia said firmly.

"I'll agree with her on that," Castle said. "And I'm sure your mom does too. Why-" he started to say before she grabbed a handful of his shirt and pulled him down to her.

"You're doing it again," Beckett warned him, though her tone wasn't in any way angry.

"Sorry, you can punish me later," Castle said. He then leaned over and whispered as softly as he could into her ear, trying not to smirk when she tensed up in response and her cheeks flushed slightly. "Sound good?" he inquired.

"Ye-e-es," Beckett stammered and then bit the side of her mouth at hearing herself do that. "Okay, so why don't we look at the rest of Agra, which is where the Taj Mahal is? If we go there-"

"When," Castle corrected her.

"Can we tell Alexis?" Julia asked eagerly, having watched them with a little smile on her face.

"Definitely, but can you wait until tomorrow?" Castle asked. "At breakfast I'll give her the book back and tease her a little, make her think we're not going, and then surprise her that we will."

"Won't she want to go right now?" Julia asked then.

"I think she'll wait," Castle said with a smile. "She does want to go to Spain and Ireland with us."

"She's welcome to," Beckett said, giving him a look as she'd heard the hesitation in his tone. "What, you thought I'd say no, just us three and my dad? We're a family Castle; there are six of us now."

Nodding once as his mind distorted from that at the numbers, Castle brought himself back to their conversation and said, "Right, so since we're going to India too, let's look at this enormous book, and see what we can see."

"Right now we go to Agra," Julia said quickly.

"To Agra," Castle said. When the little girl giggled he leaned down to kiss her; since she'd been sitting on her mother's lap the entire time; and then shared a kiss with his fiancée, lingering for a few seconds more, before he held out the book to show the first two pages about the city in central India.

Looking at a few of the pages, Julia asked, "Are we gonna go all over?"

"Well, we can't see every last place in this book," Beckett said, watching as Castle flicked through a few more pages. "There's Rishikesh," she commented, seeing the name on the left page. "But we can try and see some things besides the big cities."

"Look, Dehra Dun," Castle said when he'd turned the page and saw the first city there. "Close to Rishikesh too, we could go to both."

"That's the song George sang," Julia said eagerly. "We listened to that one when we were painting."

"That's right, you said you painted something earlier," Beckett said, surprised since the little girl hadn't remembered until then.

"Yeah, can I go get what we made?" Julia asked eagerly. When her mother and Castle nodded she got off the couch and ran to the stairs, not aware they were watching her.

"You have to admit, she looks adorable in that," Castle commented.

"She does," Beckett said with a smile. "And she said it's comfortable, if you're wondering why she wants to wear it as much as she does."

"Alexis said it was," Castle said. "So I'm not surprised Julia agrees. But what about you? Ever think of getting one for yourself?"

"I'll see," Beckett said, smiling slightly as she knew he wanted her to get a _salwar kameez_ for herself. "What kind of painting did you do sweetie?" she asked as she saw Julia was coming down the stairs with a large sheet of paper in her arms.

"Alexis said this was like Pollock, she said he did painting like this," Julia said, opening the picture and showing the splatters of different colored paints on it.

"Definitely a Pollock," Castle said. "I like your choice of colors."

"Yeah? We painted while we listened to George," Julia said eagerly. "We listened to _Dehra Dun_ first and then _Jai S-Sri Krishna_."

"She's getting more and more into Hinduism," Castle commented as he smiled at Julia's attempt to pronounce the song's name in Hindi.

"Is that bad?" Beckett asked.

"Not really, Alexis has always been into the more spiritual stuff," Castle said. "But I don't see her becoming a full Hindu, just interested in the religion and mythology. I can see why you made such an interesting painting if you were doing that while you listened to that song."

"So you like it?" Julia asked.

"It's beautiful, we'll have to save it," Beckett said. "And get a frame for it."

"Can we take it to the Hamptons?" Julia begged. "I used a lot of blue 'cause Krishna's blue and I thought it would be pretty to have there 'cause the water too."

"I think we can manage that," Castle said. "Should ask you to paint something for here, and also for wherever we end up living after the wedding."

"We can," Julia said eagerly. "We can use _Jaipur_ next! Oh! Oh, can we look there now?"

"Paul's song," Beckett said quickly as Castle looked confused for a moment.

"Oh, yeah, let me find it," he said when he recalled which one that was. Flipping through the pages Castle told Julia, "Better sit on your mom's lap, this is a long one."

"And after we look at it we'll give you a bath and get you to bed," Beckett said. "Because we already let you stay up way too late," she said quickly before Julia could protest.

"And after we tell Alexis we'll definitely be going here, she'll want to look at the book with you all the way through," Castle assured her. "So you'll get to see more."

"What is it sweetie?" Beckett asked, seeing the slight pout on their daughter's face.

"Will you look with me?" Julia asked plaintively.

"Definitely, because I'm really interested in what India has to offer," Castle said.

"Me too," Beckett said, smiling and nuzzling her nose against her daughter's as she peered up at her. She kissed her forehead before they began to look through the pages.

"Look at their clothes," Julia said, pointing to a picture of a bazaar where there were women with brightly colored saris on. "Can we dress like them when we go?"

"I think we should," Castle said, looking at his fiancée out of the corner of his eye.

"You want to wear what the men do?" Beckett asked with a smirk.

"Sure, why not? It looks comfortable," Castle said. He smiled when Beckett rolled her eyes and turned the page. "Wow, this is the City Palace Museum, and it looks huge."

"Look at the skirt," Julia pointed out.

"Look at this doorway, it looks a little like a peacock," Beckett said, motioning to another picture. "This is somewhere we'd have to go."

"Here's another place, Jantar Mantar, it's an observatory," Castle said, watching Julia as he said that.

"But they don't look like that," Julia said in confusion.

"This was built in the 1700s, before America got its independence," Beckett said, reading the paragraph describing the place. "Oh, and they still use it."

"To see the stars?" Julia asked interestedly, peering at the drawing of the entre observatory.

"To see how hot summer will be, when and how the monsoon will be and also to see if there'll be floods or famine," Beckett said, finishing the paragraph. "Interesting, it must work if they still use it."

"Look at this, the Laghu Samrat Yanta, they use it to tell the time in Jaipur, and it's accurate up to 20 seconds, that's not bad, considering it's a sundial," Castle said, looking at another picture. He turned the page and then laughed slightly when he saw what was on the right page.

"Oooh," Julia breathed, seeing there were different pieces of jewelry made in the city. "They make those there?"

"They do, and it looks like they use a lot of rubies and emeralds," Castle said.

"Do you like it Mommy?" Julia asked, since her mother hadn't said anything in reaction.

"It's nice, but a little too ornate for me," Beckett said with a smile. "But the emeralds here in the _sarpech_ are gorgeous. I have to admit Julia, your emerald is much better."

Leaning over and kissing his fiancée on the lips, Castle pulled away and said, "When we go, I'm buying all of you something there in Jaipur. Even if it's a box like this one here at the top."

"Thank you!" Julia said eagerly. She yawned then but then closed her mouth hurriedly, looking at her mother and Castle. "I'm not sleepy," she said quickly when she saw they were watching her.

"Is there more?" Beckett asked.

"Some stuff outside the city. Wow, look at this, the Amber Fort," Castle said, looking ahead. "Look at the artwork; that's what I can't wait to see actually."

"Look, elephants, can you ride them?" Julia said eagerly, noticing a picture at the top.

"I think so," Beckett said, watching as Castle turned the page. "Very pretty," she commented. "Okay, you… Castle," she said as he turned the page again.

"Just this last one, this might be interesting to see," he said defensively.

"What does it say?" Julia asked, trying to read the bold title of the park but unable to.

"Keoladero Ghana National Park," Castle said. "Looks like it's a bird sanctuary, but they have other animals too."

"I like the blue bird here," Julia said, pointing to a kingfisher.

"Okay, we've seen more than enough tonight," Beckett said, seeing the time. "Let's get her up into the bath," she told her fiancé.

"One more place!" Julia cried as Castle was looking at a page.

"Actually, your mom's right," he said, suddenly snapping the book closed. "It's pretty late, so we'll save this for tomorrow, maybe tomorrow night we can look through it a little more."

"Not maybe, say we can," Julia begged as they went up to Alexis' room.

"We can, because I get the feeling you're not going to stop asking until we do," Beckett said. She smiled when the little girl blushed and she kissed her cheek. "Don't worry; I want to keep looking through it too actually. But we should look through the Spain and Ireland books more."

"Kay, I want to do that too," Julia said eagerly. She waited as her mother undressed her once Castle had filled the tub and said, "I'm excited to go all those places though Mommy, not just one."

"So am I," Beckett said. "It's going to be a short bath sweetie, it's late."

"I know," Julia said as her mother began to wash her back. "But I really wanna see where the Beatles went."  
"We will," Castle promised. "But now you're off from camp, what're you and Alexis going to do tomorrow?"

"She's gonna take me for lunch at her friend's home," Julia replied, washing her legs then. "Edith?"

"Yeah, that's her," Beckett said. "Alexis texted me this morning," she told her fiancé who looked a little surprised hearing that. "Asking if she could and I said it was fine."

"That's why she was so excited about India," Julia said as she got out of the tub once her mother had rinsed her off. "'Cause there's gonna be a girl there that's from India, and she knows what George did."

"Hinduism?" Castle asked. When Julia nodded he said, "I think I remember her mentioning a girl… Padma?"

"That's right, she said she went to Columbia and was in her history class," Beckett said. "But I thought Alexis didn't really know her that well."

"She knows Edith," Castle said, remembering what he'd heard of the girl then. "And she might have been to India. So Julia, you might get to look at the book with them because I bet you Alexis wants to ask her where she's been since she goes to India every year if I'm right. She'll ask about any good places to go. The food."

"Hey, we didn't look at the food," Julia said with a frown.

"We will, we've had Indian before remember?" Beckett said. "But we have to be careful."

"Yeah, that chicken was hot," Julia said as she stopped on the step stool Castle had bought for her to use the sink when she was there at the loft. "But I liked the samos."

" _Samosas_ ," Castle said with a smile as he helped her brush her teeth. "But no, those were good. They do have some good food, and it'll be interesting to eat it over there in India."

Taking Julia to bed once her teeth were cleaned, Castle and Beckett tucked her in together after sharing a hug with her. He stepped up to the bed and she smiled as he kissed her forehead, squirming on the bed a little.

"Love you sweetheart," Castle told her, brushing her hair away from her forehead before they shared a kiss. "Sleep tight okay?"

"Kay," Julia said, nodding shyly. She wriggled again when her mother stepped up to her then and said, "I'm happy Mommy."  
"I'm glad to hear that," Beckett said. Kissing the top of her head she then said, "Is it because you're thinking about us going on a trip again?"

"Yeah, we go on the plane, and then we get to have fun. But I hope we go when you and Castle are married," Julia said honestly.

"We will, I think we only went to San Francisco since it worked out for us to go on Spring Break," Castle commented, standing behind his fiancée as he watched them. "But for now we still have our vacation on the Fourth."

"I'm happy for that too," Julia said seriously. She then brought her arms out from under the covers and hugged her mother tightly saying, "I love you Mommy."

"I love you too sweetie, so much," Beckett said before she shared a kiss with her. "Sweet dreams okay? We'll see you in the morning."

"Kay, can't wait to tell Alexis," Julia said with a smile on her face.

"I know, get some sleep Julia," Beckett said, tucking her back in. "Goodnight."

"Night sweetheart," Castle called to her from the doorway; Julia waving slightly at them before Beckett closed the door and led him downstairs. "What gives? We usually wait for her to fall asleep," he said as they went into the kitchen.

"She's not going to fall asleep," Beckett said simply as she poured herself another cup of coffee. "We let her stay awake too late and she was too excited after looking at that book."

"Oh, speaking of that book. You might want to take a look at this," Castle said, going to it on the coffee table. He went back to Beckett, holding it open to her before she took it.

"The Kandariya Mahadev Temple," Beckett read. "Okay, what…" she began to ask before trailing off.

"You see that right?" Castle asked.

Reading the description underneath the picture that he was talking about, Beckett said, "I've seen this before."

"You… when were you looking at an erotic panel?" Castle asked in surprise.

"I wasn't, it was on a show, they were joking about how conservative India can be now when they have the _Kama Sutra_ and this," Beckett said. "Well, if we went there, we'd have to keep Julia from the north and south of this temple," she continued. "There's no way she's seeing this. But you know what is interesting?"

"The fact that it's a foursome? Also the fact he's upside down?" Castle asked, looking at the picture.

"Not really, but it says it could be to celebrate the marriage of Shiva and Parvati," Beckett said. "You know about that right?"

"Yep, that's why it's interesting the second Indiana Jones movie is about them trying to find that _shiva linga_. Though that's just one of the meanings of that," Castle said. "But yeah, the foursome part of the panel is interesting, though those two ladies are only in there because he's got his hands on them. I was serious by the way."

"I know, but for now let's put this book away, and remember to never let her see that picture," Beckett said. "I'm hoping that's the only place that's in. Wait, is anything from the _Kama Sutra_ in this?"

Taking the book back, Castle quickly went to the index and saw it was on one page. "It is, but…" he said as he scanned the page and saw the title. "It just says there are erotic panels in a palace-fort in the town of Dungarpur. So I think we're okay besides that."

"Great, so, one thing," Beckett said as Castle went to his office to set the travel book on his desk. "Friday I'd like to go out," she told him as he came back out to where she was standing outside the doorway.

"Us?" Castle asked, wrapping his arm around her.

"With Julia and Alexis," Beckett corrected him. "We haven't done that since-"

"San Francisco," they said together.

"You're right," Castle agreed. "Okay, well, what I can do is make a reservation tomorrow morning when we talk with them. Let's agree on a place, and we'll go Friday night. Hopefully we won't have another case."

"I'm hoping," Beckett said, smiling when he drew her closer to him. "Stop."

"No way, I've waited long enough," Castle said. He leaned down then, and kissed her, gently at first to give her a chance to protest if she wanted to. But she merely parted her lips to his tongue, and he groaned before deepening it.

As they seemed frozen in place, Beckett found herself wanting to take her fiancé up on his offer earlier, and she was just about to pull away from him to tell him, when he abruptly broke off the kiss. "What?" she asked, before she heard the sound of footsteps running out of Alexis' room and then down the stairs. "Sweetie," she said, smiling as they went to meet their daughter.

"I can't sleep," Julia said, looking a little sheepish as Castle picked her up. "And I'm thirsty."

"Alright, but you need to get some sleep or else you'll fall asleep in your food tomorrow at lunch," Beckett said, going to the kitchen. She got a glass of water, handing it to Castle before he handed it back.

"I'll get the coffee cups, unless you want more?" he asked her.

"I'm good, I'm pretty sure I could stay up the rest of the night already, so I don't need any more," Beckett commented as she handed the glass of water to Julia.

"But then you'll fall asleep at work," the little girl said in confusion.

"She's only kidding sweetheart," Castle said, coming back to them as he decided he could wash the cups later. He kissed the top of Julia's head and said, "We're going to head to bed soon ourselves."

"Is it still raining?" Julia asked after a few small sips of water.

"I think so," Beckett said, glancing over at the windows.

"Can I see? Please," Julia said, adding a pleading smile when her mother was about to protest.

Sighing, Beckett looked at Castle, and when he quickly went to wash the coffee mugs she teased him saying, "Oh, big help you are when I need you to be."

"I can't resist that look on her face, so you're better on your own," he said as Julia giggled in response to their banter. "And just a quick look outside should be okay. And then you need to go to bed."

"You heard your daddy, and I agree with him completely," Beckett said, seeing the slight blush on Julia's cheeks at her calling him her daddy. She had to wonder what it was that was compelling her to say that, but didn't question it too much as she picked Julia up off the counter and went over to the nearest window so they could look outside.

"I like the rain, it makes everything clean," Julia said. "And cool, it's not hot like last night."

"I know, but this probably won't last for too much longer," Beckett said. She looked at Julia and hugged her tightly to her before sighing, feeling Julia kiss her cheek. "Sorry sweetie, just thinking," she said with a heartfelt smile as she saw the concern in her daughter's eyes.

"Really?" the little girl asked. When her mother nodded she hugged her tightly and said, "I love you Mommy, I have to say it again, 'cause I do, a lot, a lot."

"I do too," Beckett said. She shared a smile with Julia when Castle called out, "Me too," and she kissed her forehead before setting her down. "All set?" she asked her fiancé to see if he'd finished.

"Yeah, I'll follow you up," Castle replied, turning off the faucet.

As she took Julia's hand, Beckett said, "You know we decided we want to go out to eat with you and Alexis on Friday."  
"Really? Where?" Julia asked in excitement.

"We still need to ask Alexis, we'll talk about it tomorrow morning when we're all here," Castle said, drying his hands.

"What do you want to bet-" Beckett started to say when there was a knock at the door. "Did Alexis forget her key?"

"Maybe," Castle commented.

"Well, anyways, what I was going to say was what do you want to bet that they'll both want-" Beckett began as she went to the door and opened it before she cut herself off abruptly.

Hearing his fiancée stop speaking; and Julia's gasp shortly after; made Castle whirl around and he nearly dropped the towel in his hands when he saw what they'd reacted to.

Standing in the hall was a woman, hair damp from the storm, a baby bundled in white held tightly in her arms.


	12. Can't Tell You

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The title of this chapter is a lyric from the song Beware My Love by Paul and Linda McCartney, from the Wings album Wings at the Speed of Sound.

"Come in," Beckett said, pulling the woman by her arm into the loft carefully but hurriedly. She closed and locked the door, feeling Julia holding onto the pocket of her trousers as she was doing that. "Who are you?" she asked as the baby made a mewling sound and the woman spoke to it soothingly.

"My name is Carlotta Spencer," the woman said, her voice gentle in tone.

Having come over to them after hurrying into his bathroom, Castle handed her a towel and said, "I can take the baby for you."

"Her name is Isabella," Carlotta said, handing him the baby.

"We need to speak with you, we've been looking for you and your daughter for two days now," Beckett said.

"I know, I felt this was the safest place to come to you. I know you're looking into Sheryl's… what happened to her," Carlotta said, trailing off when she looked down at Julia hiding behind her mother.

"Would you mind if my daughter sat with her on the couch?" Beckett asked. When the woman shook her head, she turned to Julia and said, "Sweetie, I need you to do something very important for me and Castle okay?"

"Kay, do I hold the baby?" Julia asked.

"Do you want to?" Castle asked.

"She can," Carlotta said as he and Beckett looked at her at the same time.

"Come here," Castle said, holding his hand out to the little girl. He led her over to the couch, making her climb up onto the lounge so there wouldn't be a risk of either her or the baby falling off. "See how I'm holding her?" he asked, showing her the way his arms were.

"Yeah, hold her like that?" Julia said. When Castle nodded she held her arms as he'd said and watched, holding her breath as he placed the tiny baby on her arms.

"Easy," Castle said calmly as the baby squirmed and Julia flinched slightly. "If she gets too heavy, call us okay?"  
"And if she cries too," Julia said, nodding though her gaze was on the baby who was staring up at her.

"Castle, coffee?" Beckett asked. When he'd gone to the kitchen she watched as Julia let the baby take the index finger of her free hand and hold it. "Julia," she said. "If she gets fussy, you can rock her a little. We're just going to talk to her mother in Castle's office okay?" When the little girl had nodded, she led Carlotta into the office as Castle followed with three mugs of coffee and she led the trembling woman to one of the two armchairs, turning them to face each other as Castle set down the mugs on his desk before closing the door.

"We can see them from here," Beckett said calmly as Carlotta's eyes darted out to the family room, looking at Julia and her baby. "Please, sit."

Looking at the baby still, Julia smiled and said, "You have a pretty name." She giggled when the baby yawned and said, "It's late, I was supposed to be asleep but I couldn't either." She glanced at her mother and Castle in the office and said, "Do you have a daddy?" She wasn't expecting an answer, so she whispered, "I don't either, but you'll find one, like Castle's gonna be mine. Your mommy will fall in love too like mine did." She let the baby hold her hand, and rocked her gently before Isabella's eyes closed as she held her breath, watching her; unable to help imagining for a moment she was her little sister.

"I need you to tell us what's going on, why you and your daughter are off the grid, and why you've followed me," Beckett said after Carlotta had taken a few sips of coffee and had stopped shaking.

"Two mornings ago, when I was taking Isabella to her checkup, a car ran into the back of the cab that I was in," the woman began. "When I looked behind us, I saw two men with their faces partially covered and saw both had guns. I was uninjured, and I managed to get Isabella out of her carrier and ran as fast as I could. Luckily I knew the area pretty well, and was able to lose them. Since then, I've been on the run, trying to keep my daughter safe."

"Okay, I need you to go back a little further," Beckett said after hearing that. "To your daughter's birth."

"Yes, Sheryl, she helped me, we were best friends in high school," Carlotta said. "My first appointment she was the one who called me in to see my doctor, when I was pregnant, and we reconnected," she corrected herself.

"Were you hiding then?" Castle asked. When the woman looked at him in confusion, he explained, "There was a couple that we spoke to that had a baby around the time you did, they saw you but you were there late, and were hiding."

"That was later in my pregnancy," Carlotta said, glancing over at her baby. "I was around seven months along when I got a letter, telling me to get rid of it."

"At seven months," Beckett said.

Nodding, Carlotta said, "I was disgusted reading it and I threw it away, I shouldn't have but I really didn't think it was serious. Then I nearly got run over the next day and decided I should probably take it seriously. But I never looked for help because I knew the police would need more than a letter I didn't have and a near miss on the streets."

"Was that all it said?" Beckett asked.

"Yes, just to get rid of the baby or they would get rid of us both," Carlotta said.

Sharing a look with Castle, Beckett took a deep breath and said, "There's a personal question I need to ask you."  
"The father I would assume," Carlotta said. When Beckett nodded once, she tried to speak, but tears welled up in her eyes before she finally managed to say, "I don't know." She took a breath that was shaky at first, but finally she was able to say, "It happened in August, I was at a hotel in DC, for a convention for interior decorators; it's what I do. And one night I went to the bar, and I talked to a guy, but very briefly and I kept my eye on my drink, because I know the risks. Eventually he just left, and I went back to my room where I slept… almost twelve hours. And then two months later I discovered I was pregnant with Isabella."

"Excuse me," Castle said, leaving the office as he realized Beckett would probably need to ask more personal questions about that.

"And when you woke up, were you-" Beckett began to say.

"No, not sore, or bleeding or anything that would have clued me in to the fact that I was raped," Carlotta interrupted her. "But, that's around the time I conceived and…"

"So you shared that letter with Sheryl," Beckett said, getting Castle's attention outside and calling him back in with a gesture. "And she helped you to the point where there's no record of you even giving birth."

"I have her certificate," Carlotta said. "Here," motioning to the inside pocket of her jacket. "And once I was married I was going to put down that Charlton was the father of the baby."

"So she was going to help you get married," Castle said, having come inside as she was explaining.

"Yes, we thought that saying another man was the father would keep the real father away from us," Carlotta replied simply. "But I heard he's dead too."

"I'm wondering," Beckett said, taking her phone out of her pocket. "If you know this man at all?"

Looking at the sketch of the fake judge, Carlotta nodded saying, "Yes, that's him, I remember him from the accident, getting out of the car with the cut on his forehead."  
"Okay," Beckett said with a sigh. "We'll put you in a hotel, with a security detail. I'll have a female officer inside your room with you and the baby, as well as an officer outside because I don't think they would be working alone." She went to the picture they had of the man from the Indian restaurant, and she showed it to the woman asking, "What about him?"  
Shaking her head, Carlotta said, "I don't know, he could have been the other man in the car but… I don't know."

"I'll call my partners," Beckett said, bringing up Esposito's name on her phone. "And we'll start-"

"Richard?" Martha's voice called from the door.

Standing up as Carlotta shot out of her chair, Beckett grabbed the young woman and held her arm saying, "It's his mother," to calm her down. "And his daughter," she said quickly when she saw Alexis was with her.

"Alexis, close and lock the door," Castle told her swiftly when he was outside the office. He saw his mother and daughter looking at the baby in Julia's arms and said, "This is Carlotta and her baby, Isabella," quickly as he glanced at his fiancée. When she nodded he said, "She came here to speak with Kate."

Since he'd told them both about the case, looks of realization appeared on Martha and Alexis' faces, and they nodded before going over to the couch.

"This is your daughter? She's adorable," Martha said, looking down at the baby.

"Thank you," Carlotta said, going to take Isabella from Julia. "Thank you for holding her."

"You're welcome," Julia said, blushing a little. "She was sleeping."

"Espo?" Beckett said in the office, watching as Alexis and Martha were peering at the baby. "Yeah, I found the mother and baby we were looking for. Well, she found me; she came to my place and explained her story. The father of her daughter is trying to kill them both. No, she has no idea who it is, she was raped in DC… yeah, call the hotel and get Hastings and Thomas to take the first shift since they're there. I'll meet you and Ryan there so you two can get a formal statement. Right." Hanging up she went out and said to her fiancé, "You want to show up?"

"You always say you'll call me with a new development," Castle said, standing in front of her and taking off her engagement ring he'd put on after they'd come home earlier. "How long do you want me to wait? Also, where am I going?"

"The Regency, we use that hotel every once in a while for witnesses or a situation like this," Beckett said, seeing Carlotta was watching them. "Alright, I have somewhere I can take you and there will be protection there. Are you ready?"

"Yes, I just need that bag," the woman said, motioning with her head towards it by the door.

"Come in about twenty minutes," Beckett said to Castle before she went to the closet to get her jacket and an umbrella for them. She was about to get her gun from the top shelf when she felt Julia throw herself at her. "Sweetie, I need-" she started to say to her daughter.

"I know, but is someone gonna hurt Isabella?" Julia asked.

"No," Beckett said firmly as she knelt down in front of her. "We're just taking her and her mom to a hotel so they have somewhere to stay out of rain okay?"

"Kay, will you come home?" Julia whispered.

"Of course, and I hope it's okay, Castle's coming to meet us at the hotel for a little," Beckett explained. "But Martha and Alexis are here and they'll take care of you."  
"I'm kay Mommy, just make sure the baby is," Julia said before she hugged her mother around the neck tightly. "I love you."

"I love you Julia, so much," Beckett whispered, kissing her cheek before they shared a kiss. She stood up and once Alexis had picked the little girl up she got her holster, attaching it to her hip as Castle stood in front of her since he knew she didn't like to arm herself in front of their daughter. "Try and get her to bed if you can," she told him.

"I will, I have Alexis to help luckily; and my mom," Castle said. Since Carlotta was standing at the door with her baby, he merely gave her a quick smile before saying, "I'll be there in twenty."

Nodding, Beckett said goodnight to the others and to Julia again before they left, letting her fiancé close the door behind her. "Do you have everything you need for her?" she asked when they were near the elevator.

"I do, I ran back home after the accident, and grabbed what I could," Carlotta said as Beckett took her bag from her. "I'm sorry if barged in on your family."

"We…" Beckett began to say before trailing off, wondering how to explain things so the mother wouldn't let slip she'd been at Castle's place.

"I understand, I know who you both are," Carlotta said with a slight smile. "And I'll tell your partners I went to your place like you said." When Beckett glanced at her as they walked into the elevator she explained, "I could hear your conversation."

"Thank you for not saying anything," Beckett said with a slight nod. "But I have to ask, you don't remember anything around the time you were in DC that might point out who the father is? A man who you turned down and grew angry or someone watching you too closely?"

"No, no one," Carlotta said. "I mean nothing that would make me think they'd do something like that to me. I am sorry; I really am, but… I just hope you find him and stop him. Isabella is everything to me now, and I need her as much as she needs me."

"I can understand the sentiment," Beckett said softly, watching the woman shift the baby up to kiss her cheek.

* * *

"Detective," Hastings said as Beckett and Carlotta walked down the hall to her. "Esposito wanted me to let you know they're on their way, they had to contact Captain Gates."

"Thank you for meeting us, stay with her while I do a sweep of the room," Beckett told her as she used the key card to open the door. She handed it back to the officer, and with her hand near her gun, walked inside. Since there was only the small outer room, bedroom and even smaller bathroom, it took little time for her to make sure there wasn't someone waiting there or a hiding place where they could wait. "Alright, everything's set. Where's the officer I need outside?" she asked Hastings as Carlotta went inside.

"He's coming with Detectives Ryan and Esposito," the officer replied.

"We're here," Ryan called out before Beckett could walk back inside the room. "Had to get Officer Rizzio here to help out since Thomas' vacation starts today."

"She's inside," Beckett said as Esposito was behind the officer. "I heard her story, but thought Gates would want an official statement."

"You tell Castle about this?" Esposito asked as they went inside while Rizzio took up his post next to the door.

"I did, he said he'd come, though I told him he didn't have to take time out of his night to-" Beckett began to say.

"I didn't have anything going on tonight," Castle said, nodding to the officer as the man held his hand up to keep him from passing.

"Alright, then come on," Beckett said shortly. When the door was closed she went to Hastings as Ryan and Esposito went to Carlotta, looking at Castle to see he was looking at the woman. She was relieved he was making it seem like he'd never seen the two before, and she was about to talk to the officer when her fiancé went over to them.

"Mind if I hold her?" Castle asked. "While you're talking to them? I have a daughter, so I know what to do."

"Sure, thank you," Carlotta said with a slight smile, carefully handing the baby to him. She fussed a little over her daughter and then went into the bedroom with the detectives as she'd requested since she didn't want her daughter to hear; though the baby obviously couldn't understand.

Breathing out carefully as he wasn't sure if the woman was going to know not to say he'd held the baby before, Castle looked at Isabella, a little surprised to see the baby was staring up at him. "Should be sleeping," he murmured to her, rocking her slightly.

After finishing informing Hastings of what she needed to do until the morning, Beckett went to her fiancé and said, "So you don't forget how to do that I guess," relieved he'd gone to the window so they could speak in relative privacy.

"No, you want to hold her?" Castle asked. When his fiancée shook her head he said, "Because you're armed."  
"Basically," Beckett said. She glanced to the bedroom and said, "I have to wonder who her father is."

"You never asked her if she was with anyone at the time," Castle commented.

"I knew she wasn't. Don't ask why, and don't say I knew since we're both women," Beckett said quickly.

"No, I wasn't going to say, I had the same thought," Castle said. "But it was if it was in DC, then the suspect pool is going to be huge. Not just politicians, but lobbyists, or CEOs, anyone that doesn't need a baby that was born out of wedlock around. Sorry," he whispered to the baby

"Yeah, I thought of that myself," Beckett said with a sigh. "But we can try and hope they have an archive of their security footage at that hotel. Otherwise she's going to be spending the rest of the life protecting her daughter."

About to comment on that, Castle closed his mouth then as he heard footsteps behind them, and he turned to see Carlotta walking to him. "She just fell asleep," he commented as he carefully handed her over.

"Thank you," she said, taking her baby to the bedroom.

"Carlotta," Beckett said. "Tomorrow we'll have to move you somewhere else; we can't keep you in one place in case they are watching you right now. But we will do everything we can to keep you and Isabella safe." She nodded to her partners and Castle to leave, and after she'd heard Hastings lock the door behind them she led the way to the elevators. "Okay, so I think we'll need to take her to a safe house," she said to the men as she turned to them.

"We have one set up," Ryan said. "Gates had us do that after we spoke to her. We can take her after we bring her into the station to collect hers and the baby's DNA."

"So tomorrow, whoever's there needs to contact the hotel she was at; the Washington Mall Suites," Beckett said. "Did she tell you anything about that night?"

"What night are you talking about?" Castle asked them. "I didn't hear her story."

Beckett quickly told him about it and then said, "Anything besides that?"

"No, she told us the same story," Esposito said. "You think this might have something to do with a politician?"

"We were talking about that while you were speaking to her, and it's most likely," Beckett said. "But we think it could be anyone not needing a baby around born out of wedlock because he raped the mother. But we should consider it being-"

"An aide," Castle and Beckett said at the same time. He nodded when the two looked at him and said, "Or someone close to a politician if we're going along that route. Or even-"

"Someone trying to set up someone else as the father," they said together again. Beckett looked at Ryan and Esposito and said, "We'll have enough to look into tomorrow, for now though, get some rest and we'll come at the case with what we have now."

"Are you going to handle Ms. Spencer and the baby?" Esposito asked, nodding back towards the room.

"Gates wanted you to actually, she said you'd do better with that," Ryan said. "You and Castle since you both have kids. Though she was more of the mind that you'd be a better baby sitter," he told the writer

"Figures," Castle muttered. "So I guess I'll see you guys tomorrow. Should I get something for her? She seemed to have the bare bones of supplies for the baby."

"I'll ask her when she comes into the station tomorrow," Beckett said. "Actually, I think you should escort her Espo."

"Sure," he said simply. "Ryan gets to call the hotel? Start looking at the footage we get?"

"There's no guarantee they'll have footage from the bar," Ryan said simply. "At least not so far back as August last year."

"We'll still need to try, and if you could do that for me Ryan I'd be grateful," Beckett said. "For now, let's get to our homes." In the lobby she hung back, using the excuse of talking to the concierge to do so as Castle was the first to go. After speaking to the woman, she went outside, not surprised when her fiancé came up to her.

"So we should get some sleep," Castle commented once they were in the car with the divider closed between them and the driver.

Beckett didn't respond to that, only looked at him out of the corner of her eye before she said, "Were you able to get her to sleep?"

"Yeah, she took nearly twenty minutes, but I got lucky with Alexis playing her violin," Castle said.

"Her violin?" Beckett asked in surprise.

"She can play a mean lullaby," Castle said with a nod. "I don't know which one it was, but it worked, she was out like a light. But I want to see her."

"Me too," Beckett said. She couldn't help smile then and said, "Did you do that a lot when Alexis was little?"

"I told you how I used to watch her sleep," Castle reminded her. When she nodded her head, he was going to say something, but the cab stopping kept him from doing so, and he paid the driver before they were walking into his lobby. "My mom and Alexis might still be awake, I told them about the case remember oh… crap," he started to say once they were in the elevator, before recalling something saying that.

"What?" Beckett asked as she turned to him.

"I told them; well, told Mother and filled Alexis in on the details about what's going on with the Wilder investigation," Castle told her.

"I expected that," Beckett said. She took a deep breath asking, "You told them about Child Services too?"

"I did," Castle said. "I had to, because they needed to know-"

Beckett placed her hand on his arm saying, "You're right, they need to know what could happen." They were walking down the hall to his loft when she then said, "How did they respond to that?"

"Mother started to say different things we could do if it came to that, but they're behind you a hundred percent," Castle said. "But there's someone else you need to tell."  
"I know," Beckett said with a nod. "I just didn't want to tell him Julia might be… taken from us, he loves her. She's his joy."

"You too, but I know what you mean," Castle said with a nod. They'd reached his door, and he opened it, seeing his mother and daughter there. "You didn't have to stay up," he said as he set aside the umbrella Beckett had used inside the closet along with their jackets.

"We wanted to," Martha said. "We'll do whatever we can to help Julia," she said seriously, taking Beckett's hands.

"Thanks, I appreciate that actually, though we're trying not to think about it too much," Beckett replied. "I need to see Julia though, is she still asleep?"

"Oh she is," Martha assured her. "We checked on her not too long ago."

Castle followed his fiancée up to the second floor, and they went into Alexis' room carefully. When he saw their daughter fast asleep, he squeezed Beckett's hand as they made their way to the bed.

Leaning down, Beckett kissed the top of Julia's head, being careful not to wake her up. As she watched the little girl once Castle had kissed her, she was still amazed at how innocent she looked. She had the sudden desire to protect her, pick up their daughter and keep her from knowing anything that might hurt her. She sighed under her breath as she and Castle stood in the doorway together a while to watch her, feeling his arm wrap around her tightly before she leaned her head on his shoulder. Finally though, she took his hand and led him back downstairs saying, "I find myself wanting to be able to do the same as Carlotta, protect our daughter from anything negative so easily because she's still a baby," she told him.

"I know, but I think for now, we've done a pretty good job," Castle said.

"Of course you have," Martha said firmly, going to them. "You're wonderful parents, especially when you're parenting together. We're going to bed, but we'll see you in the morning I hope."

"You will, we'll want to spend as much time with Julia as we can before we leave," Beckett said with a smile at what Castle's mother had said. "And I hope you'll have fun at that lunch," she said to Alexis.

"We will, and don't worry, I'll take care of my little sister," the young woman said as she hugged her dad.

"I knew that already, goodnight Alexis, Martha," Beckett said before they watched the two go upstairs. "I should call him now," she said, looking at her fiancé.

"Want to talk to him alone?" Castle asked as he led the way to his office.

"No, stay here, but I'll talk to him on my own," Beckett said with a brief smile before she took her phone out of her pocket. Her smile returned as Castle led her to the armchairs; still positioned across from each other, and she kissed him gently as he slipped her engagement ring on her finger before she dialed her father's number.

"Katie?" Jim Beckett said on the other end when he'd answered.

"Hey Dad, everything's fine, I just have something I need to tell you," Beckett said, her phone on speaker as she didn't mind if Castle heard the conversation.

"It must be serious though if you're calling me this late," Jim said. "What's wrong?"

Taking a deep breath as quietly as she could, Beckett told her father about the IA investigation, and when she had finished said, "They won't find anything though Dad, she shot herself and that's what they'll see."

"Alright, but if you need it, you know I have a number of friends who would represent you," Jim said, a little shocked at the news. "Though you're probably right."

"Thank you," Beckett said. "But there's more," she continued, looking up at her fiancé. She was grateful for his supportive glance, and she told her dad about Child Services looking into her with the IA investigation.

"They can't do that," Jim said as soon as his daughter had finished speaking. "They can't do that to Julia."

"They might," Beckett said. "Because if I get charged with manslaughter-"

"There has to be something we can do," Jim said. "I'll speak with some of my colleagues, and see if there's anything to keep Julia with us. What if Castle adopted her?"

"I don't think they'd allow him to," Beckett said. "Because of the problems she has with men. But Dad, all that depends on the investigation, and if they find nothing, Julia will be fine."

Jim sighed on the other end and said, "You're right, I just don't want to lose her."

"Believe me, we don't either," Beckett said, reaching out and taking Castle's hand. "For now though Dad, if I hear anything I'll let you know."

"When did you find out about this investigation?" Jim asked.

"On Sunday," Beckett said slowly.

"Castle knows I'm hoping," her father replied to that.

"I told him as soon as I got home," Beckett said. "And I had to tell Julia about the investigation into me; to a degree; because the case worker assigned to her right now went to her at the Met." When her father reacted vocally in shock at that, she told him in more detail about that, and finished saying, "So she's worried I might lose my job, but she doesn't understand I could go to jail."  
"I won't mention it to her," Jim said, knowing why his daughter had said that. "But I'd like to see her, tomorrow if I can."

"She's going with Alexis to a friend's place for lunch. But come for dinner tomorrow," Beckett said, looking at Castle. When he nodded she said, "I'll try and come early, but you can come whenever you'd like once Alexis and Julia are home; I'll tell Alexis to call you."

"Thank you Katie. Does she have anything planned for Thursday?" Jim asked.

"We'll talk about it tomorrow," Beckett said. "I'll let you go Dad; I know you're going into work tomorrow."

"I'll see you tomorrow Katie, goodnight," Jim said.

"Night," Beckett said before hanging up.

"You're definitely not alone in this now," Castle commented, smiling when she did. He leaned over and kissed her gently before slowly pulling back, looking into her eyes. He couldn't stop himself, and he kissed her again, a little deeper that time before they needed to part to breathe.

"I know," Beckett said, smiling again. "But I'm wondering if we might take a rain check on your suggestion earlier."

"Do you not want to-" Castle started to say as they stood up.

"I'm not sure, though I don't know about picking a position when we don't have a copy," Beckett said. "Unless it's that sample you've mentioned before?"

"It is," Castle said, walking behind her into their room. He closed and locked all the doors before pausing and saying, "Sorry, force of habit," as he looked to her to see her reaction.

"That's fine," Beckett said with a smile. "But tomorrow night," she promised him before grabbing her pajamas and disappearing into the bathroom, knowing his gaze was on her as she disappeared from his view.

* * *

Sitting on the end of the bed, Castle was in pajamas, listening to the shower turn off. He glanced up from his tablet for a moment and scratched his cheek as he tilted his head to the side. He was so focused on the picture on the screen that he nearly jumped a mile into the air when arms wrapped around him from behind. "What the-" he started to say before he turned to his fiancée. "When did you get on the bed?"

"Just now, I'm assuming that's porn considering the way you had your head tilted and you were so enthralled," Beckett said, reaching in front of him.

"Wait-" Castle said before he was cut off, hissing heavily as she took his tablet in one hand and squeezed his groin with the other. "I thought you wanted a rain check," he complained as she let him go and sat back, looking at what he'd been looking at.

"So that temple really piqued your interest," Beckett teased him as she saw the picture of some of the sculptures of the Kandariya Mahadev Temple up close.

"I just wanted to see how detailed the sculptures were," Castle said, not really defending himself as he knew already she wondered the same thing. He tried not to smile as her head tilted to the side, but it was impossible, and he was soon doing so widely.

"Oh stop," Beckett said, rolling her eyes as she handed him the tablet. While he was busy looking at the screen, she went to her side of the bed carefully, setting her feet on the floor to stand. "It's a good thing you locked the doors," she said, as he didn't look at her when she'd moved. She looked over her shoulder at him and untied her robe, letting it slip to the floor before she got on the bed, lying back on her pillow as she watched him since she was naked.

Looking down at his tablet, which he'd been closing already, Castle hurriedly finished the process and set it on his nightstand; pausing for a moment before he went to her hurriedly. "So you're sure you don't want to rest?" he asked as he lay above her, his weight on his elbows.

"Not really," Beckett said simply before she kissed him on the lips. "Tonight, I just want us, nothing different, or new, or stopping in the middle to switch positions."

"Not even that last one?" Castle asked in a mock incredulous tone. He laughed shortly when she punched his side playfully, and he leaned down, closing the gap between them to kiss her. He kept the kiss gentle, and slowly pulled away before he stared into her eyes. "That's all you want?"

"It is," Beckett replied simply. She wasn't too surprised when Castle said in response, "Help me," and she sat up, helping him undress. She lay back on the bed before he had finished, and was about to wrap her arms around him when he came back to her while he reached for an extra pillow.

"Is that alright?" Castle asked, looking at her to see the slight smirk on her face.

"More than okay," Beckett said, raising her hips for him to slide it under her. She bit her lower lip at the feel of the cool, crisp linen covering the pillow against her skin, and she wrapped her arms around him tightly as he lay on top of her. She took his kiss as he slid into her; both of them working to help him do so; and she couldn't stop groaning into his mouth as she felt him until he stopped. Breathing out as they parted at that point, she said, "I don't think you need to worry," as he nuzzled her lips with his. "It's still enough."

"Yeah, for me too, but I'll be glad to-" Castle began. He was cut off when Beckett suddenly squeezed her legs around him and he clenched his teeth together hard in response. "So, you're ready," he said instead of asked.

Beckett was about to respond to that, but when he moved, she wasn't even able to draw a breath to speak. A moan escaped her lips instead, and she held on to Castle as tightly as she could, feeling his pace before she schooled her hips to move with him; having let them thrust against him haphazardly until then. She felt his lips on her neck, and arched it up, letting him have better access before he slid down to the hollow of her throat. His tongue was slowly working over her skin, and she squeezed her eyes shut before his hand came up to cup her right breast. " _Rick_ ," she breathed out as he gently squeezed it.

"This is why I love you," Castle said, moving up to her lips, brushing his against them a few times, feeling her panting breath. "How you… respond to me," he said, hesitating slightly as she was suddenly moving so he could feel she'd grown tighter. He shuddered at that; since Beckett had in no way moved her thighs; and he kissed her roughly, feeling her lips parting. Before she could, he plunged his tongue into her mouth, feeling hers coming up to curl around it. They fought a little then, before finally they parted, breathing heavily together and he descended fully to her breasts; where he'd been going before that.

A cry escaping her lips, Beckett ran her hands over the back of Castle's head before he was suckling at her nipple, his hand at the other, fondling it carefully. She felt him pull back, kissing around her breast again, before going over and proceeding to do the same to the other. Though she hadn't said specifically, she was immensely gratified to feel his rhythm staying the same, a little more than slow and less than rough. It was what she'd wanted, but hadn't thought she could put into words. "Oh god… Rick… _please_ ," she begged as he drifted his lips up to her shoulder and was kissing along the top to her collarbone, nibbling at the junction between it and her neck.

"What do you want?" Castle queried as he stayed where he was, his voice slightly muffled.

"I don't know… just you… just, don't stop," Beckett said, her eyes closed in her pleasure. When she felt something brush against her lips, she kissed her fiancé deeply, moaning as he slid his hand under her hips, tilting her up to allow him to get a little deeper inside her. His next thrust after that move, and he was, so much so that she arched her back hard, biting at her lower lip and trying not to break the skin. She was a little surprised when Castle whispered to her, and she paused her thrusts, for only a moment, trying to hear what he was saying.

"I can't love," Castle told her seriously. "Even if you asked…" He was going to say more, but couldn't really get the words out as he felt her moving her hips a little shallower than before. He breathed out hard when he thrust into her the first time as she was doing that, the pleasure from her tight around him more than enough for him to feel. He then reached over, grabbing whatever pillow his hand touched first, tucking it below her hips to raise her higher. He then touched her legs that had been wrapped around his waist loosely at that point, but as soon as he'd brushed his fingers against her, she was moving them up his sides, as high as he knew she found comfortable. It was a benefit to them both, as he was able to reach deeper within her, and she felt him against her a little harder. But he was still very careful in his pace, his fiancée doing the same as he bit her ear lobe gently, nibbling at it after.

Breathing heavily, Beckett raked her nails over the back of his head, trying to focus on one thing that was giving her pleasure. She knew if she tried to take everything in at once that he was making her feel she was going to lose control far sooner than she wanted. But it was difficult, everything was shooting through her, gathering where he was buried deeply inside her then, and she slid her hands down to his back to dig her fingertips into his shoulders, feeling him slowing down suddenly. She gave a little moan of disappointment, but his lips trailed from underneath her ear, down to her breasts again. When he glanced up at her, his warm breath moistening her nipple, she bit her lower lip and nearly hissed out, "Yess," as he barely let her get the y out before he took the taut nub between his lips, tongue coming into play immediately as she grabbed the back of his head again with one hand to hold him in place.

Feeling his fiancée's hand alternately stroking his hair before grabbing at the back of his head, Castle groaned around her breast, and he moved back slightly, blowing against her damp skin to try to make her stop as the sensations from that were a little too much. He was already feeling plenty of satisfaction as he took her slowly, and he didn't want to finish quite yet. But while Beckett shivered against him and arched her back, her hand gripped the back of his head again, and he gave up, going to her other mound and suckling at it gently. He heard his fiancée's breathing grow faster, until she was panting, and he nuzzled her nipple with his lips before moving to kiss her hard. He was a little unsure if she was alright with that, but when she responded in turn, he shook off the rest of his doubt and plunged his tongue into her mouth before drawing hers back into his.

When she absolutely needed air, Beckett threw her head back and breathed in and out deeply. She cupped his face with her hands, stroking his cheeks as they stared intently at one another. She trembled seeing the arousal in his blue eyes, and she let him take her left hand, kissing her fingertips before pressing one to the ring's band under her finger. "Please," she moaned softly as he slowed down until he almost wasn't moving. She knew he wasn't going to stop, but was a little surprised when he slid back inside of her, going as slowly as he could, and she knew he was trying to feel her more deliberately. She slipped her hand; which he was kissing the palm of by then; from his grasp, and moved it down to wrap both her arms around him, pulling him close as she wanted them pressed together as much as was possible. She didn't care if they couldn't be completely, whatever she could feel of him flush against her, bare skin to bare skin, was going to be enough. She let out a gasp as he jerked against her the last few centimeters, and her nails dug into his back for a moment. A little startled when her fingertips weren't wet with his blood, she looked at him as he withdrew from her slowly, so much so she was literally aching. "Rick, stop, please," she begged him, before she realized he could take that as her wanting him to stop making love to her and she opened her mouth to speak when he beat her to it.

"I want to watch you," Castle said simply as he continued at the same pace, his eyes never leaving hers. He wasn't surprised to see them close as she parted her lips to speak, and he was quick to trail his lips down her chin and to her neck since she'd arched it in response to him. He felt the slight sheen of perspiration on her skin, and he nuzzled her pulse with his lips before drifting down to her pendant, kissing a few times around it before she was suddenly pushing up on the back of his head, pulling him up to her lips where she kissed him that time. He let her flick her tongue against his a few times before taking over by pulling back and then crushing her lips below his own. He groaned as he went back to his steady pace before, and let out a heavy grunt as her legs spread wide, making her even more constricted than before around him. It was enough to make up for the fact there was less friction between them, and he changed the angle of his hips just enough, knowing he had to bring her off with him, unable to take anymore.

Breaking only a few seconds later, Beckett was almost clawing at her fiancé's back, crying out his name as she broke off their heavy kisses in her ecstasy. She wasn't sure if she said any more than his name, the rushing noise in her ears not letting her hear anything else. She felt Castle following her very shortly after, and her fingers went white with her grip on him as she stopped scratching her nails over his skin and just held on for dear life. When she found herself stopping, she went limp, and breathing roughly felt him shudder one last time against her. He pressed against her, and she stroked his hair gently before he kissed her and then carefully got off her. She watched him and then leaned over, grabbing his tablet, opening the internet and seeing the page he'd been looking at last was still there.

"So those interest you too," Castle commented as he sat on the bed next to her. Since she was sitting up, he was able to push her hair back off her shoulder, kissing the top of it until he reached her neck, making her laugh softly. "Should I be jealous?" he asked as she tilted the screen towards him and he could see the sculpture she was looking at.

"I don't think so, but you think this could be done?" Beckett asked, getting him to stop kissing her neck.

"Not really, because where would the balance be?" Castle asked. "Oh I see, even though they're both on one leg, they're coupled together so they're one. Yeah, that could be the reason why they're saying these statues are representing the marriage between Shiva and Parvati. Since the _lingam_ and _yoni_ together represent the source of life."

"Are you sure you're not the one into Hinduism," Beckett said with a smile as she searched something. "I'm not looking at this as a suggestion, just wanting to see the representations you were talking about."

"It's not really supposed to be about sex remember," Castle said as they looked at the pictures. "The spiritual part of it. Kind of like in _The Da Vinci Code_ , where they walk about the fusion of the cup and blade."

"It is," Beckett said simply, shutting down the tablet before she leaned over, setting it back onto her nightstand. She wasn't surprised, when she sat back up, that he proceeded to kiss her neck and she sighed in pleasure as he wasn't kissing to her work her up again, only because he wanted to kiss her. She closed her eyes as he helped her lay back, and she held him to her as he lay next to her, moving around to her left shoulder before he drifted up to her lips. They kissed deeply, but slowly, sensuously, until they parted and stared into each other's eyes for a moment before she tugged on the back of his neck once.

Kissing again, that one was unhurried, but slightly rougher than before, staying like that until they had to breathe. They whispered a rapid I love you to one another before their lips met once more and they laid down after, pressed close as they drowsed together, letting the pleasant exhaustion of their love making take over, which allowed them to sleep deeply as the night passed midnight to head for the coming dawn.


	13. If You Could Stop It

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The title of this chapter is a lyric from the song Beware My Love by Paul and Linda McCartney, from the Wings album Wings at the Speed of Sound.

Breathing out heavily, Castle ran his hands up his fiancée's back, listening to the sound of his palms sliding over her slightly damp skin and shuddering in response to it. "So," he said, panting for air still. "I take it I started your morning out well. Considering how you were yelling just now."

Groaning in response to that, Beckett climbed off of his lap and lay on her side of the bed, watching him climb over her. She smiled when he had disappeared from view, laughing once when she heard him yell, "I know you're smiling even though I don't see you right now." Sitting up as he came back to her she teased him saying, "I feel like I should see a sex therapist."

"Why, it's getting bad?" Castle asked, climbing back onto the bed and over her to sit next to her.

"No, I just wonder if it's that normal for us to be doing this so many times," Beckett said, still joking.

"Well, think of it this way," Castle commented, pretending to go along with it though he didn't think she was being serious. "You worry about us becoming like other couples, falling into a habit in our lives, and then falling out of love and eventually getting a divorce. Means we probably we won't, since we seem to need each other."

"Seem to," Beckett scoffed, tossing her hair back over her right shoulder. "You should have felt how you were just now; I thought you were going to screw me right into the headboard. Through the wall if that was possible."

"That's why I switched, harder to do that when you're sitting up," Castle joked. He laughed when she pushed at him and he wrapped his arms around her, kissing her deeply as he drew them back on the bed. After a few moments he slowly pulled away and murmured, "We just need each other."

"We do," Beckett said, since she knew he wanted to hear that coming from her own lips. "But another thing, since you're talking about that, let's not use one single position every time."

"Impossible," Castle said immediately, almost not letting her finish. "So many awesome ways to have your body. I should warn you, I plan on taking my time and exploring each and every way I can have you. Repeatedly until you're sick of me."

"You heard me screaming to you," Beckett reminded him, biting her lower lip as she recalled her cries of ecstasy that included her begging him to fuck her. "I don't think we should worry about ourselves in that way. Or wonder why it is we want one another either, it just happens."

"True, speaking of wanting…" Castle said, running his hand down from her hip to her ass, squeezing it tightly with one hand though he had a feeling she wasn't quite confident about what she'd said.

"No, wait, I want to get the Precinct soon, be there to meet Carlotta and the baby," Beckett said, stopping him.

"Alright," Castle said, sighing in mock suffering. "But tonight you owe me, remember you said you did."

"I'll see," Beckett said wryly as she sat up and then got off the bed to get her clothes.

Lying back with his hands behind his head, Castle watched his fiancée start to walk from the dresser to the bathroom, admiring her naked form as she went unabashedly. When his vision was covered, he laughed and pulling off a pair of pants said, "So no?"  
"No," Beckett said laughing as she knew that he was teasing her. She paused for a moment, watching him walking to the dresser then, feeling her heartbeat speed up momentarily before forcing herself to move before she gave in to the overwhelming temptation of her fiancé. "Tonight," she muttered to herself, already feeling him though they had been apart for a while by then. But she still felt how he'd been inside her, fucking her and taking her lips repeatedly until they were swollen. She trembled once, and then ruefully pushed the memory from her mind, getting dressed as rapidly as she could.

When his fiancée came into the bedroom, Castle said, "Are you sure you don't want to escort Carlotta and the baby in?"

"No, I was already thinking last night that I would like to spend a little longer with Julia," Beckett replied, putting on her boots. "Since we don't need to take her in a little earlier for school or camp."

"That's true," Castle said, looking at his watch.

"And I knew already it would probably take some time for the hotel to get us that footage," Beckett said, smiling as she watched him. She went over to the mirror and straightened her ponytail slightly before leaving the room without a word to him. So she was a little startled when he suddenly grabbed her wrist and turned her to him. "I thought I'd get out without you even noticing," she teased him.

"Not possible," Castle said simply before he leaned over, and kissed her gently at first. When she responded to that he deepened it, sliding his tongue into her mouth carefully, slowly, until she was moaning against him.

Breathing roughly when they'd parted, Beckett was about to say something when they heard a loud squeal outside, and she smiled at Castle's frustration that was so obvious on his face. "You know that happens when you have kids Castle," she told him, brushing a kiss to his lips before there was a rapid knock at the door. "Hey sweetie," she said, seeing their daughter standing there.

"Hi! I thought you and Castle were asleep," Julia said hurriedly. "I wanted to ask Mommy, is Isabella kay?"

"She is," Beckett said, looking at her phone then. She explained; when Julia looked up at her in surprise, "I asked your uncles to let me know if something happened to them, and nothing did, they're fine."

"Can I see her again?" Julia asked shyly as Castle picked her up and hugged her.

"I don't think so," Beckett said honestly as they walked out to the kitchen. "I need to talk to her mother at the station, and they'll stay there for a while until we take them back to the hotel."

Castle was about to comment on that; since a safe house was mentioned the night before; but then realized she didn't want their daughter to know what they were doing exactly in case anyone tried to question her. "So what'll it be this morning?" he asked as he set Julia onto one of the chairs.

"Can we have oatmeal?" Julia asked. "Like in India?"

"She means _congee_ ," Alexis said, coming down the stairs then. "And that's rice, not oats. Not sure you guys would like _ganji_ , the Hindi word for it."

"Have you had it?" Beckett asked. "Good morning Martha," she said as Castle's mother came down then.

"I heard everyone was here so I decided to join you," Martha commented.

"I've had it in San Francisco, it's not bad," Alexis answered. "At least not to me."

"So are we agreed we'll have oatmeal instead?" Castle asked, looking through the cabinets.

"We are," Martha said, since her son couldn't see that Julia was nodding rapidly. "Here Richard," she said. "Alexis bought this yesterday, Irish oatmeal."

"That reminds me," Beckett said as Castle was reading the preparation on the side of the box. "You mentioned it the other day, you're Irish?"

"Irish and British," Martha said. "He never told you? When he asked me about my family he mentioned he wanted to find out since you'd told him about your family."

"I forgot," Castle said. "Sorry," he said to Beckett.

"And also Scottish, slightly Scottish, I have a great; numerous greats; grandfather who went from Perth to York I believe," Martha said. "On my mother's side."

"Did he have a plaid?" Julia asked, having been listening interestedly.

"I don't think so kiddo," Martha said with a soft laugh as she cupped the little girl's cheek. "But when Castle adopts you; you'll be more Scottish than you already are."

"Do we have a plaid?" Julia asked her mother as she came up to her to pick her up.

"No, remember, we're more Irish than anything else," Beckett said simply, wishing that she'd already had some Scottish in her background before adopting Julia.

"I can't wait to go to Ireland," Julia said eagerly as she hurried to the table to help Alexis set it. She faltered and then asked, "Are we gonna go?"

"We will," Beckett said with a laugh as she got some coffee ready. "Otherwise that travel book is going to go to waste."

"Dad," Alexis suddenly said, turning to him as he was stirring the oatmeal in a pot.

"Alexis," Castle replied in the same tone. He smiled when Julia giggled at that, and asked, "Yeah?"

"Did you guys look at the India book I left you?" Alexis asked.

"A little," Castle said, grateful for the pot as a distraction.

"And?" Alexis asked, not really liking that he wasn't meeting her gaze.

"And, who knows," Castle said. He stirred the pot slowly and then looked over at his daughter, a little surprised to see how disappointed she looked. He caught Julia's attention, and nodded to her sister, hoping she understood what he was trying to tell her.

"April Fools!" Julia suddenly blurted out, not sure how else to tell Alexis he was joking.

"Really?" Alexis asked, turning to her dad. When he smiled she ran to him and hugged him, letting out a short squeal of delight before she stepped back and socked him on the shoulder.

"Ow, why?" Castle asked, laughing as she pushed at him next. "I didn't realize you wanted to go that badly."

"I do, and we're all going right?" Alexis asked.

"To India?" Martha said in surprise.

"We'd like to wait though," Castle warned his daughter. "We want Julia to be a little older."

"That's fine, there are other places to go to," Alexis said simply with a slight nod.

"You should be warned Kate, Richard is an avid traveler if you didn't know already," Martha said.

"I know, I got a little taste of it in San Francisco," Beckett said. She saw her fiancé looking at her and she smiled at him briefly before saying, "Luckily I'm the same way. Or I would be if I could afford to travel as much as you apparently have."

"Then you better be prepared to use up those days off you have piled up," Castle said.

Shaking her head as she smiled at how serious he'd been, Beckett poured out a cup of coffee for him and prepared it before handing it to him. "Just give me fair warning. And let me know where we're going, I don't want to be surprised like I'm apparently going to be for the honeymoon."

"You didn't decide on where you're going?" Alexis asked in surprise as she got a bowl of brown sugar ready for the table.

"He's taking me somewhere I've never been," Beckett said. "And as long as it's safe, I don't really care where we go."

"Did you think I'd take you somewhere where there's combat going on?" Castle asked wryly.

"With you? You never know," Beckett teased him.

"I hope this place is romantic," Martha said, watching their exchange.

"Don't worry, it is," Castle said in reassurance. "You'll love it there, and want to go back."

"So what did you look at in the book?" Alexis asked as her father took the pot of oatmeal over to the table and they sat around it.

"A lot of stuff," Julia said. "Oh! Are you gonna take Mommy to India after you get married?" she asked eagerly.

"I've never been there before," Castle reminded her. "But that's a pretty good guess."

"Too bad, I think it will be romantic," Julia said seriously. She then turned to her sister and eagerly said, "Do you know about the emperor and empress? He made the Taj Mahal for her."

"She read the same book that we did," Castle told Julia.

"Then you know they were a lot in love. Like Mommy and Castle," Julia said.

"You know, I have to wonder if we'd match their level of being in love," Beckett commented.

"I think so," Alexis said, laughing with Martha when Julia nearly spilled her spoonful of oatmeal she was nodding in agreement so fast. "Really, you can't measure that though, but you're as devoted to each other as they were."

"So you would make a palace for Mommy?" Julia asked Castle.

"I don't think I could, but sure, I would," he replied, smiling at the beaming smile on the little girl's face.

"So we're going to visit the Taj Mahal I hope," Martha commented.

"Definitely," Beckett said. "I've always wanted to see it in person, because the pictures were gorgeous."

"What about the things inside?" Alexis reminded them. "And the temples too, the Hindu temples. Those will be amazing to see in person."

"We're gonna go see where The Beatles went to," Julia then said eagerly.

"Oh, did you see, in the same-" Alexis started to say.

"We saw Dehra Dun, we're going to try and head there too," Castle said.

"He's right, I would like to see it," Beckett said.

"Are you going to ask this friend of Edith's about India when you go today?" Castle asked his daughter.

"I was, but just where it's safe to go, good places to eat in New Delhi and Mumbai. She has family in both places, and her grandparents actually own a house near the coast by Mumbai; I'm not sure where exactly; but it's an old house someone from England built in the early 1900's," Alexis said. "She told Edith about it and she said she was going to bring pictures from her last trip to lunch."

"Edith wants to go?" Castle asked.

"She and Max want to go during winter break," Alexis said simply.

"Why don't we?" Julia asked.

"We'll go to India as soon as we can sweetheart," Castle assured her.

"He's right," Alexis said quickly. "We'll go, but for now until we go, what do you want to do?" she asked since she was standing up to take her sister's bowl.

"Do you have to go?" Julia asked her mother as Castle stood to help Alexis.

"Soon," Beckett said, checking her watch. She watched as Julia walked around the table to her, and then picked her daughter up, setting her on her lap. "But I'll try and come back as soon as possible. That reminds me Alexis; my dad wants to spend time with Julia tonight, so I'd appreciate it if you could call him once you come home from lunch."

"And that reminds me something I wanted to ask you," Alexis said. "I was wondering if I could buy Julia another _salwar kameez_ , since she likes the one I bought her so much."

"Sure," Beckett replied as she glanced to Castle, not surprised to see him nod at her questioning look. "Actually, why don't you call my dad before you go there, ask if he wants to join you, he might want to see the store."

"Yeah, he can help me pick my clothes," Julia said excitedly.

"And that too," Beckett said with a smile.

"Call me as well Alexis," Martha commented. "I'll join your outing and put in my own input on her new outfit. I might pick one out for myself as well."

"I told you you'd want one Gram," Alexis said with a smile, going back to the table to finish her cup of coffee. "Beckett?" she asked.

"I'm alright," she replied quickly before Castle could say anything. "Okay, I'm going to go, Castle, come whenever you want, there probably won't be much though you know."

"I know, but I'll still come," he assured her.

Kissing Julia's cheek, Beckett then shared a kiss with her before setting her down. "Have fun at lunch, and listen to Alexis," she told her seriously.

"I will Mommy," Julia said in the same tone, nodding. She smiled and said, "Can I ask Grandpapa to come with us to India?"

"You can," Beckett said with a smile.

"Do you think he'd join us?" Martha asked.

"He's been interested in India too. But he's always loved Spain, which is why he goes there constantly," Beckett said before she shared a hug with her daughter. "I love you sweetie, and I'll see you tonight."

"Kay, I love you too and have a good day Mommy," Julia said somberly before she smiled a little bit after her mother had.

"What if we stopped in Madrid for a bit before India?" Castle asked her as he followed her to the door after she'd said goodbye to his mother and daughter. "It would break up the flight time."

"That's true, we'll think about that though, because I'd want to focus more on India," Beckett said, taking her bag from her fiancé. "Alright, I'll see you at the Precinct," she said after slinging the strap over her shoulder.

"Should have done this before you put that on," Castle said before he was sliding his arms around her, pulling her to him. He kissed her deeply, but shortly, since he knew the three over by the table weren't going to budge. "See you."

"In a very short amount of time," Beckett said with a wry smile before she left, waving to the others.

Watching her go down the hall, Castle closed the door and turned back to see that Julia was running to him. "I'm not leaving yet," he told her.

"You should," Julia said stubbornly.

"Okay, then let me get my jacket and I'll head out to join your mom," Castle said with a laugh at the expression on her face. He shared a kiss with her as he took her into his bedroom, letting her hold his jacket while he rolled down the sleeves of his shirt. "Okay, everything your mom said I'm repeating. But I'll say this too, I love you sweetheart," he told her when he went to the door, Alexis going over to them. "I'll see you tonight Mother. And Alexis, I'll try and be back in time so you don't need to cook again."

"I wouldn't mind. Actually I might order out for us," Alexis told him.

"We'll see how it goes today," Castle said simply before kissing her cheek. He kissed Julia's as he knelt down feeling her arms squeezing tight around his neck. "Alright, have fun at lunch and the store. I love you both," he told them before leaving.

"Come on Jules," Alexis said, taking her sister's hand as she saw she looked a little saddened. "Why don't we color what we want the fabric of our new outfits to look like?" pleased to see the smile on Julia's face as they hurried to Castle's office to get the little girl's art supplies.

* * *

"Detective," Gates said as Beckett paused walking to her desk.

"Sir, is there anything new from IA?" Beckett asked, setting her bag down.

"Not at this time. What I'd like to know is where is Mr. Castle?" Gates asked.

"I-" Beckett started to say before she looked up and saw her fiancé stepping out of the elevator. "He's there."

"Mr. Castle," Gates said as he approached them. "I'd like you to take Ms. Spencer's baby. She's refusing to give Isabella to anyone but you while she speaks with Beckett."

"Oh, sure," Castle said, hurrying to where the woman was with her baby.

"Are you still going to be performing a DNA test on her?" Gates asked.

"We are sir," Esposito said, walking over to them. "In about a half hour someone will come in."

"Alright, apprise me of anything you might find that will tell us who the father is," Gates replied before walking to her office.

"Castle, why-" Beckett said as he came over, the baby against his shoulder.

"She's fussing, and apparently likes being walked around," Castle explained, bouncing the baby very slightly. "But Carlotta's ready to talk to you now."

"Does she have the carrier?" Beckett asked.

"She does, big help in the car on the way here," Esposito said as he came over to them. "No one following us though, that I saw."

Nodding, Beckett motioned to Castle with her hand and he trailed after her as she said, "I forgot you were going to be the baby sitter today. But you seem to enjoy it," trying not to smile as he murmured something to Isabella. "Does this bring back memories?" she asked, standing at the door to the room which was closed.

"Not really," Castle said. He wasn't too surprised when Beckett looked a little taken aback and said, "Things were different," in explanation, hoping she understood what he was trying to say.

Reaching out to the doorknob, Beckett paused and then nodded to that before she went into the room, hearing Carlotta sob once. "Sorry," she said as the woman jerked her head up at her.

"No, it's okay," Carlotta said, drying her cheeks with a Kleenex. "I'm just trying to think now we're under protection we'll be okay but…"

"I think you've had a rough couple of nights," Beckett said, sitting across from her. "Were you able to sleep at all?"

"Don't you need to ask me questions about the father?" Carlotta asked in surprise.

"We'll get to that, I'd like to make sure you're alright to speak with me first," Beckett said simply. "Did she sleep alright?"

"She did. She's a wonderful baby," Carlotta said. "She's like my little sister was when she was a baby, well, so our mother said. I was only two when she was born."

"Have you tried to contact your family?" Beckett asked then.

"My sister and her husband are in Brazil, visiting his family," Carlotta said simply. "Oh, her name is Madeline Spencer; she kept her last name."

"Were they aware you were pregnant?" Beckett asked.

"I've been afraid to tell her over the phone," Carlotta whispered. "She was in the Army, but she was honorably discharged and is now a lawyer but before she was discharged she was in California and she and her husband went from there to Brazil. So I haven't seen for at least a year and a half."

'Would you like us to contact them?" Beckett asked. When the woman shook her head she started to speak, but then hesitated before she beat her to it.

"It's not Ortiz, he was with my sister in August, and he's pretty devoted to her," Carlotta replied, knowing what Beckett had wanted to ask.

"Alright, then I hope it's okay if I ask you instead for more detail about that night, what you remember," Beckett said. "And I'd like anything at all that comes to mind, I know it was about ten months ago, but whatever you can tell me would help."

Glancing over at Castle outside the room walking back and forth with her daughter in his arms, Carlotta smiled slightly before she grew serious and turned to Beckett, beginning to speak.

"Hey man, you haven't lost your touch it looks like," Ryan said, walking up to Castle.

"You don't forget being a dad," he replied. Nodding his head carefully to the file that Ryan was holding asked, "Something you found?"

"Not really, just a final report on the search of our first vic's apartment," Ryan said.

"Got a hold of the driver of the cab Ms. Spencer was in," Esposito said, walking up to them. "Bro, stop walking," he said when Castle kept pacing back and forth.

Quickly explaining why he was doing that, Castle asked, "What did the driver say?"

"It happened pretty much like she explained," Esposito said, nodding to the room. "Though he was able to get a partial license plate before the two drove off after her."

"Can you search it?" Ryan asked.

"Last four letters," Esposito said. "So we can, I'm going to do that now, just wanted you to let Beckett know as soon as she's done in there."

"I will," Castle said.

Ryan was about to ask him something, when Esposito called out that the phone on his desk was ringing, so he hurriedly turned to answer it saying, "Probably the hotel with footage from the bar and hallway outside her room."

Watching him go, Castle heard the baby make a sudden cooing like sound before she started to cry. After having heard the same tone when Alexis had cried as a baby, he hurriedly knocked on the door before Gates could hear Isabella. "Sorry," he said when Beckett had motioned him in, Carlotta jumping up. "She's hungry," he said, though he felt a little stupid saying that as he knew the woman was aware of that already.

"You can-" Beckett started to say.

"Your captain let me know, thank you," Carlotta said with a smile before leaving.

"Well?" Castle asked when they were alone.

"The story was pretty much the same," Beckett said, standing. "Though it's not exactly clear since it was ten months ago."

"Why didn't she go to the police when she realized she was pregnant?" Castle asked. "She knew she was raped."

"There was no way to prove that," Beckett said when her phone rang. "I texted Lanie," she explained to her fiancé quickly when she saw who was calling. "If it was possible to rape someone without any proof of it or the victim realizing it. You got my text I'm guessing," she told the doctor.

"I did, and it's possible, but it would take time," Lanie said. "And you'd need to arouse the woman to leave no damage," she said. "I'm going to guess she wasn't a virgin first off."

"No, I asked," Beckett said simply. "And she'd been with someone about two months before she was raped, if that matters."

"Sexually?" Lanie asked. At Beckett's yes she said, "Then that helped your rapist slightly. But it's likely she was given a very heavy dose of a date rape drug. Which one I can't tell you, not without a blood test done and it's pointless now of course."

"You could still arouse someone when they're unconcious?" Castle asked.

"You could, but like I said, it would take time," Lanie replied.

"Okay, thank you Lanie," Beckett said.

"How's the baby?" Lanie asked.

"Fine, why?" Beckett asked.

"You remember what we talked about?" the doctor then asked.

"I'll talk to you later Lanie," Beckett said, shaking her head. "Okay, so Ryan and Espo?" she asked her fiancé.

"Ryan got a phone call; likely from the hotel about the security footage. Oh, and he had the final report of the search of the first vic's place," Castle said. "And Esposito got a hold of the cab driver, and the story was the same as Carlotta said. He did get a partial license plate, and he's checking it right now."

"Good, I'd like to call the hotel myself actually," Beckett said as they went to her desk.

"Any reason?" Castle asked.

"She remembered there was one other convention at the hotel, for landscapers," Beckett replied. "I need to find out if there were any specific companies that had there and just a list of attendees in general."

While he waited for Beckett to finish on the phone, Castle looked over as Carlotta came out with her baby from the direction of the bathroom. He jumped up and hurried to the woman saying, "If you want, I can watch her for you, so you can have something to drink or eat."

"That would be nice, thank you," the woman said with a tired smile. "Do you think I can bring the carrier here? I'd feel better with her near Detective Beckett."

Looking down at Isabella who was fast asleep in her mother's arms, Castle glanced at Gates' office, and then decided. "Go ahead," he said as he held his arms out and took the baby, managing not to wake her up as they moved her.

Turning her head as she was on hold, Beckett watched Castle sit down with the baby in his arms and she raised her eyebrow slightly.

Shaking his head, Castle took the carrier with one hand that Carlotta handed her, and he set it on the desk, not seeing the look his fiancée was giving him as he buckled Isabella into the seat. He then sat back down in his chair as Beckett hung up, and then saw the second look she shot at him. "What?" he whispered.

"Why is she here?" Beckett asked simply, glancing to Gates' office.

"I took her so Carlotta could get something to eat or drink. And take a break, she looks pretty tired," Castle said.

"Being a single mother will do that," Beckett said. "Plus Isabella's not quite sleeping through the night."

"I remember those days… nights," Castle said in nostalgia. "Fun times. But the mornings were he- bad."

"Nice catch," Beckett said with a shake of her head.

"So what'd the hotel say?" Castle asked softly as he started to rock the carrier gently as the baby made a soft noise of distress.

"They're sending me a list. And also a list of the male employees," Beckett said.

"I don't know that it could be one of them, oh, to help, got you," Castle said, having not seen that in the first place since he was cleaning Isabella's mouth.

"You know she drooled on your shoulder while you were putting her in the carrier," Beckett pointed out, turning from her screen since she hadn't gotten the list yet.

"Oh, she did. Listen, watch her for me for a second," Castle said before he got up to leave.

"Castle," Beckett hissed in a whisper. But he was gone, and she groaned, which nearly woke the baby up. Standing up, she looked down at Isabella, panicking for a moment before she rocked the carrier, letting the baby take her index finger to try and calm her down again. "What?" she asked Ryan as he walked up to her. "I can't let her start crying," she said, nodding to Gates' office.

"Yeah, no, just wasn't expecting you to do that," Ryan said. "I have the security footage from the bar, was going to go check it out, but I'd like to ask Ms. Spencer about her going to that bar before."

"Go ahead," Beckett said before she slid her finger away from the baby as Castle came over. "You know, it wasn't acid," she said as she sat back down.

"I needed to get this too," Castle replied easily, giving Isabella a pacifier. "Should keep her calm for a while."

"Okay, here's the list of the people for the landscaping convention and the decorator's convention, since someone there could have done this or helped out too," Beckett said, looking at her screen.

"I don't really think so," a voice said next to them. "Sorry," Carlotta said when the two looked at her, slightly startled. "I know everyone there."

"It still could be, we'll need to check," Beckett said.

"Thank you for watching her," Carlotta said, taking the carrier.

"Any time you'd like us to do that again, just ask," Castle said. When he turned to his fiancée after the woman had gone back to the room with her daughter he said, "Now what?"

"Us? Castle, you're the designated baby sitter," Beckett said, unable to stop the corner of her lips from curling up slightly.

"Yes us," Castle said firmly. "Really, it's not that hard to do."

"Okay, so we need to do background checks," Beckett said, taking the file that Officer Thomas handed her. "And I'm wondering if you can take over for Ryan right now."

"Really?" Castle asked. But when his fiancée didn't answer, just got up, he hurried to follow her over to where their partner was, looking at the screen. "You haven't been able to find her yet?" he commented, seeing that Ryan was still fast forwarding.

"You and Castle need to switch places," Beckett said before the detective replied.

"What's up?" Ryan asked, pausing the footage and handing the remote to Castle.

"We're going through a list of the people that attended the two conventions at the hotel, as well as employees," Beckett explained. "And it's a long list. Have fun Castle."

"Yeah, I'll let you know the second I get something," he replied, sitting down and pressing play as the bar footage began again.

* * *

"So I asked her if any of those men looked familiar," Esposito said, sitting at the table in the back room where Beckett and Castle were finishing their late lunch. "And she said she remembered he did have sandy, blond-ish hair."

"That narrows it down. But something I'm wondering, where the hell is the person that's going to take samples for the DNA test?" Beckett asked.

"Yeah, I called, they got stuck in a traffic jam," Ryan said, coming in. "Can we switch?"

"We're going right now," Beckett said, wiping her mouth with a napkin. "We'll take a look at the other angle we got from the bar's footage."

"What about the other two angles?" Esposito asked as he took a carton of rice and sat down with a heavy thud in the chair she'd been sitting in.

"We'll worry about that later," Beckett said. "Castle."

"Right behind you," he said quickly. "Think we should check on Isabella and Carlotta?"

"Where do think I'm going?" Beckett shot back.

"Detective Beckett?" LT called from the elevator.

"Bring her back here," Beckett said quickly when she saw the nurse next to him. "You're Nurse Rice?"

"Yes, I'm sorry about the delay Detective, but there was an accident around Lex and 98th, it tied up the street for blocks," the nurse said when she reached Beckett and Castle. "They're inside?"

"Go ahead," Beckett said, though she followed the woman closely, just in case.

"I'm here to gather some samples ma'am, for a DNA test," the nurse said as Carlotta's eyes went wide seeing her.

Looking on as the nurse swabbed both the baby's mouth and then Carlotta's, Beckett heard footsteps behind her, knowing it wasn't Castle since he was already behind her. She was a little surprised to turn and see that it was Gates, but didn't comment on it as the nurse packed her things and then walked to the door. "Sir," she said to the captain, stopping the nurse from walking past them. "I'd like her to have an escort back to her lab."

"Have Officers Thomas and Murphy do so," Gates said simply.

Castle watched his fiancée look for the two, and he glanced back at the room to see Gates had gone inside and was talking to Carlotta, holding Isabella's hand. He left quickly before the captain could see him watching, and he went to Beckett as she came back from the elevator. "Not sure they would target her, it's just as likely his DNA isn't in the system," he told her as they went to the TV where she set up the new footage.

"I know, but I'm not taking any risks," Beckett said. She looked at the time stamp on the screen, and hurriedly fast forwarded it until she got to the night Carlotta had said she'd been at the bar.

"There," Castle said, seeing the woman towards the middle of the bar, sipping a drink. "And that guy coming up now looks like he's got sandy colored hair," he commented as they watched the young man walk up to Carlotta. "Impeccably dressed, nice suit, not sure what kind of landscapers and interior decorators there were at the hotel, but he doesn't seem to fit with them."

"A little bit presumptuous," Beckett said, looking at him.

"No, you can tell, he's walking a little differently than the other people there, at the bar," Castle said. "He's confident, like he lives there or has been there long enough to know it like home."

Watching the man, Beckett had to nod in agreement with that, and then said, "Okay, but that doesn't help us with seeing him."

"Wait, there," Castle said quickly. When Beckett paused he pointed to the mirror that was behind the bar saying, "There he is."

As quickly as she could, Beckett zoomed in on the man's reflection, and set it to print after working on the quality slightly before they watched the man with Carlotta until he left her and continued for another five minutes before the woman left herself, staggering slightly. "His head is turned a little too much to the left, but, I think it'll work," she said as she took the picture. "Come on." She led the way out of the room and to the back room where Gates was leaving.

"You've found something Detective?" the captain asked.

"Yes sir, this is the man she mentioned as being the only one near her that night," Beckett said. "But he was the one that drugged her drink; she has a hard time walking after leaving the bar."

"Show her the picture," Gates said, looking at it. "And see if she can't remember anything specific now she has this to jog her memory. After you're finished, see me in my office."

"Yes, sir," Beckett said with a nod before she and Castle went into the room.

Looking up, Carlotta saw the picture in Beckett's hand and held her daughter closer to her body, as if trying to shield her. "What is that?" she asked.

"We were able to get footage of you at the bar," Beckett said. "And this was the man you spoke with."

Studying the photograph, Carlotta nodded, "That's him."

"We're wondering if maybe you might be able to remember more of him than just this side angle the camera got," Beckett said.

"I thought you were getting more footage from other cameras," Carlotta said in surprise.

"The angles won't be as good as this one, especially since there are people on either side of you both," Castle said.

"I can try," Carlotta said. "If I can keep this picture with me."

"Go ahead, we'll send the sketch artist in here," Beckett said. "How is she doing?" she then asked, nodding to the baby who was staring up at her with wide eyes.

"Fine," Carlotta said with a tight smile, nodding her head.

Leaving the room, Beckett quickly spoke to Esposito and Ryan who'd finished lunch. She had Esposito get the sketch artist, while Ryan went to finish with the other footage they had. When they were gone, she and her fiancé went to Gates' office and she stepped inside saying, "You wanted to speak to me sir?"

"I did," Gates said, taking off her glasses. "I've contacted the safe house we use and they're prepared to take in Ms. Spencer and her daughter. Was she able to attempt a sketch?"

"She's going to try right now," Beckett said. "Esposito is with her, he'll see what else she can remember."

"Alright, once she's finished, I'd like you to take her to the home, and have Officers Ritter and Isles follow you there in an unmarked car for added protection," Gates said.

"Should they be plain clothed?" Beckett asked. At Gates' nod, she left with Castle and they went to her desk where she made a call to the hotel.

"Any word on the hallway footage?" Castle asked when she'd hung up the phone.

"They're having some trouble finding it, they're going to keep working on that and send it as soon as they can," Beckett said. "Basically telling me not to call anymore." She stood up with Castle and they went to the murder board saying, "Hopefully she'll remember more of what this guy sounded like, what he talked to her about with this sketch."

"I'm wondering if maybe you should have her go under hypnosis to try and get her memory back," Castle commented. At his fiancée's look he shook his head and said, "That's a no?"

"No," Beckett said, rolling her eyes. She was surprised when Esposito came up to them and asked, "Anything?"

"The sketch artist can finish everything up without her," he explained. "But she said he'd told her his name was either Danny or Dave-"

"Probably not his real name," Castle interrupted.

"And he had an accent, Boston or New England," Esposito finished, looking at him.

"That might help, though he could have put on a fake accent," Beckett commented. "Does she remember anything he told her?"

"He apparently just asked about her work, and she turned him down and he walked away," Esposito said.

"Guys, you need to see this," Ryan said then, getting their attention. When they'd joined him in the room he said, "Take a look at her glass while this plays."

On the screen, Carlotta was talking to the man, and something at the end of the bar caught her attention, leaving the man the chance to switch their drinks before she glanced back at him.

"She had her hand off the drink," Castle said.

"She wouldn't remember that," Beckett said, looking at him.

"I'm not blaming her, just stating the fact," Castle said. "That's how he was able to do it."

"Yeah, we need that hallway footage," Beckett said. "Alright, we need to get her to the safe house. I'd feel better if we could have eyes on her constantly, and it'd be better for the baby to be in a home, not a police station. Castle and I will go. Ryan, watch the rest of this and then call the hotel again, ask about records of the key cards being used. We need to see if we can pinpoint a time when the rapist entered and left, so when we get that footage, we can get to it right away. Espo, contact the FBI when that sketch is finished, and ask if they can do a face recognition scan with it."

"Try to focus on aides to politicians. The way he held himself, he was one," Castle said.

"You can tell just from that?" Esposito asked. "It's not just a dude in a nice suit?"

"It's not," Beckett said simply. She left the room and went back to where Carlotta was, going inside and telling her, "I'd like to take you and Isabella to the safe house we have set up."

"Will there be protection there?" Carlotta asked, standing up and picking up the carrier where her daughter was.

"There will be, two officers," Beckett said. "I know them personally, so you'll be safe."

Nodding her thanks, Carlotta followed Beckett out, Castle behind them, and as they went in the elevator to parking with the two officers, she murmured gently to Isabella, reassuring her. Though she knew that she was mostly trying to reassure herself as they walked to Beckett's car.

* * *

"Alright, this room is windowless, but at this point I think you could do without windows," Beckett was telling Carlotta.

"It's fine, will I have to stay here?" the woman asked, holding her baby tightly to her.

"For the time being. The entrance is well locked, the fence pretty tall with those spikes at the top of it," Beckett assured her. "And you'll have food downstairs. But if you need anything for your daughter, please ask one of the officers."

"Is there any way you could remain?" Carlotta suddenly asked.

"I…" Beckett said, looking at Castle, who shrugged.

"I'm sorry, I'd just feel better if you were here, you know what I have to lose," Carlotta said softly.

"I do," Beckett murmured gently. "But they will protect you," she said, nodding down the stairs. "They have kids themselves. I'll stop by before I return home tonight, to check on you. And you have my card, so if you need to, call or text me, please."

"I will, thank you again Detective Beckett, for everything you're doing," Carlotta said.

"Like you said, I know what you don't want to lose," Beckett said simply, smiling slightly when the baby cooed. She left with Castle then, and she paused at the door with Officers Isles and Ritter. "Keep focused, I want your attention on everything. Every last noise that is not Ms. Spencer or Isabella, any glint in the yard or car in front of the house; across the street, one of you check it out while the other stays with her. And speaking of that, one of you will be as close to Ms. Spencer and the baby as you can without invading their privacy. I need them both to survive all of this."

"We understand Beckett," Isles said. "We have kids too; we don't want anything happening to that baby either."

"Alright, I'll check with you every few hours to get an update on anything suspicious and also to see how they're doing," Beckett said. "You'll change shift with another pair; I don't know who yet; at about eleven tonight. I'll stop by later after I'm finished at the Precinct and on the way home to check her. I'll call before I get here."

"Got it," Ritter said with a nod.

"Alright, Isles come out with us to the top step, act as if we've just said goodbye," Beckett said. "Castle."

"Coming," he said, having been watching his fiancée. He couldn't help but feel a sense of pride at how fierce she was in her unofficial protection assignment, but he shook that aside as she suddenly stopped and said to the two plain clothed officers, "Make sure she stays away from windows."

"We will," Isles said as he opened the door and let them step out.

Knowing her old friend from the academy had made a quick check of the neighborhood outside first; Beckett stepped out and said, "We'll see you Isles."

"Goodbye Beckett, Castle," the officer said, nodding to them both.

As they walked down the block; their car further down since they'd had to park back to make it less noticeable, Castle said, "You're pretty serious about this."

"And how could I not be?" Beckett snapped. She then said, "Sorry, I just, it gets to me, because of Julia of course. But you have to admire her bravery, how much she's doing to protect this baby that was…"

"Yeah," Castle said quickly, knowing what she meant. "But you would be just the same for our little girl."

"I would," Beckett said, smiling at him slightly. She jumped a little when they reached her car, feeling her phone vibrate three times in her pocket; her text message signal. Taking it out and reading the message, she motioned her fiancé to get into the car as she followed him, and once the doors were closed, turned on the ignition and said, "It's from our daughter, speaking of Julia."

Taking her phone, Castle laughed when he saw Julia dressed in a white _salwar kameez_ , the message, _Can I get this Mommy, Castle?_ , under it. "Adorable, but white-" he started to say.

"Gets dirty too easily," Beckett finished for him. She took the phone and texted back that their daughter should get colors and put her phone away. She was about to take the car out of park as Castle rolled down the window, and it was then they heard three shots in rapid succession.

"Was that-" Castle started to say when the radio came to life.

"Officer down, officer down at 1140 Maywood," Isles' voice yelled. "My partner's been shot-" and the message was covered with static as there was one more shot.

Looking at each other, Castle and Beckett got out of the car as she grabbed her walkie-talkie she had on her. "This is Detective Beckett, shots fired at 1140 Maywood, backup and EMTs needed," she said before they reached the steps of the safe house and found Ritter on the steps, unconcious, a gunshot wound at his left leg bleeding.

Looking at the trail of blood going up the landing and into the house, Castle hurriedly tied his belt around Ritter's leg and tied his jacket around the man's arm to cut off the blood seeping out at the wound there and watched as his fiancée withdrew her gun, and proceeded to go up the steps as sirens went off, faintly, in the distance. A neighbor showed up then, yelling he was a doctor, and he took over as Castle himself stood up.

"Rick, stay-" Beckett started to say, turning to him as she got to the top of the stairs. She wasn't surprised when he shook his head; interrupting her; and she turned, hurrying into the house, Castle following behind after he'd pulled her backup from her ankle; at her back as the darkness of the house swallowed them.


	14. Without Permission, Above Suspicion

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The title of this chapter is a lyric from the song Loveliest Thing by Paul McCartney, a bonus track from the 1993 re-release of his album Flowers in the Dirt.

Walking into the foyer, Beckett saw Isles coming down the last step and slipping to the floor as the blood from the wound in his leg oozed it under his feet. "You alright?" she asked, lowering her gun after looking around and seeing no one there. "Where's the baby?" she asked.

"I don't know, they took her," Isles said. "Go Beckett, we've got help coming."

Nodding as she was already starting to run, Beckett came around a corner, and was able to see into the backyard, and saw a man with a hood on his head, a carrier in his hand as Carlotta was running after him. She took off at a sprint, Castle behind her, and opened the door to the back. "Let go of the baby!" she yelled as loudly as she could, aiming for the man's head as Isabella's shrill cries filled the air.

The surprise in hearing her voice cause the man to stop for a moment, giving Carlotta enough time to grab her baby's carrier and set it down as she was grabbed, pulled against the man. Beginning to scream, she was abruptly cut off as he wrapped his arm around her throat, and a gun was pressed to her temple.

"I have her, go," Castle said to his fiancée in a low voice as they walked across the grass, forcing the attacker back towards a corner. When he reached the carrier, he put Beckett's backup piece in his coat pocket after setting the safety, and he got the baby, running back into the house as an officer came up to the doorway.

"Let her go," Beckett said, knowing that Castle had Isabella though she only heard him running.

"Stay there," the man yelled in a gruff voice that was obviously moderated. "Stay or I will shoot."

"Let her go and drop your weapon, you're out numbered," Beckett told him, hoping the officer behind her was doing as the man asked. There was a long moment of silence as the man stared at her, and finally he shoved Carlotta to the floor, his gun turning to Beckett.

Before she or the officer could shoot though, the gunman opened fire on them, rapidly, spraying the bullets back and forth as the officer ducked back inside the house, and Beckett hit the ground.

A few shots made the grass in front of her explode, and it wasn't until it stopped that Beckett looked up to find the backyard empty. She yelled to the officer, "Check and make sure someone was back there," before she went to Carlotta. "Are you okay?"

"Isabella?" the woman asked.

"Come on," Beckett told her as she helped her up. "We'll check."

"She's here," Castle said from the living room, which was the furthest room from the backyard on the first floor. "She's okay, I managed to calm her down," he told Carlotta as he handed the baby to her. "Isles and Ritter are in ambulances outside; I don't know how they are though."

"Detective," another officer called, getting their attention.

"Yes," Beckett said, going to the doorway quickly. "I need to talk to Isles and Ritter," she said as she walked, the officer and Castle following her.

"Beckett," Isles said, taking the oxygen mask off his face. "I can breathe!" he said in irritation to the EMT trying to get him to put it back on. "There were two of them. They made sure we stayed split up and the one you were with in the backyard got Ms. Spencer and the baby in the kitchen. I got shot upstairs, she went down…"

"Easy Isles," Beckett said quickly as the man put the mask back on. "You'll get help. Want me to call your wife?"

"Yeah, I'll be fine, just some blood loss, same with Ritter, he'll be fine too," Isles said. "Tell Denny I'm great."

Stepping back from the ambulance as the EMT closed the doors; Beckett turned to the officer and said, "Were you able to find either of them?"

"There was a car, black with a yellow New York plate, we were unable to see much more than that though as it was taking off," the man replied.

"Behind the house in the alley," Beckett stated. When the man nodded, she took a deep breath and headed back to the house to get Carlotta and the baby. As she and Castle were going up the steps, she heard Esposito calling her name. "We're fine," she said.

"Not you," Castle said suddenly, noticing her hair. "Grass?" he asked. "He got some shots near you."

"I'm fine," Beckett told him shortly since she didn't have any time to tell him more than that. "The baby is fine, and so is Carlotta, though the gunman that stayed here was going to take Isabella."

"Ritter and Isles?" Ryan asked.

"They'll be okay, some blood loss, and Ritter might have gotten a concussion, I'm not sure," Beckett said simply. "One of you call the Regency, and Rizzio and Hastings, they're going back and staying there, I don't need to have them go through this again." She turned abruptly and went into the house, stopping short as she saw on the couch in the living room that Carlotta was sobbing, her daughter's cheek pressed to hers. She had a hard time swallowing then, as there was something so familiar in that tableau, but she shook it off as best she could, focusing on what she needed to do next. "Carlotta? Do you need medical attention at all? Isabella?" she asked gently, sitting next to them.

"No, no, we're okay, just… scared," Carlotta replied, wiping her tears from her face. "I thought I was going to lose her. Do I still need to stay here?"

"No," Beckett said, looking up as a CSU team came inside then. "We're taking you back to the Regency."

"Oh thank god, any place is better than here," Carlotta said, her voice shaky with tears as she put Isabella back into her carrier. "Thanks," she said as Castle carried it for her.

Walking back to the car after instructing Ryan to go through the house with CSU and Esposito to do a quick canvas of the neighborhood, Beckett watched as Castle helped Carlotta getting the carrier set in the back. She remained there as he came up to her, watching the mother speaking to her baby before she felt her backup gun in her hand. "Don't tell Gates," she said, not really what she'd wanted to say, but not able to voice what she was thinking at that point.

"They'll be safe," Castle said simply, seeming to sense what she didn't say. "Let's go."

Beckett walked around the car to get in and as she did a u-turn she could see the street in front of the house crowded with cars and flashing sirens, lights lost in the bright afternoon sun.

* * *

Sitting down on the couch in the outer room of the room she'd stayed in the night before, Carlotta watched as Beckett paced back and forth in front of the windows, and looked at Castle as he sat at the table next to her. "Is everything okay?" she asked softly.

"Yeah, we're just trying to get the two officers here," Castle said. "Are you?"

"Oh, fine, just glad nothing happened to Isabella," Carlotta said, glancing at the closed door to the bedroom where her baby was sleeping. She sighed and said, "Do you think it's really the father that's doing all of this?"

"It's likely," Beckett said, having hung up her phone and sitting next to Castle. "But the officers who watched you last night will be coming in shortly. They're bringing your bag that was left at the safe house and some of the baby supplies we'd had put there as well."

"I need both," Carlotta said, breathing out heavily. "I wonder sometimes," she said after they were quiet for a moment.

"About what?" Castle asked.

"The father, who is he," Carlotta commented. "I worry he's insane doing all this to get us and knowing part of that is in my daughter…"

"You would be able to raise her so she doesn't inherit that from him," Beckett said quickly.

"I know, it just scares me," Carlotta said. She paused and then said, "I'm surprised none of you asked why I kept the baby."

"We don't really have any right to question that," Castle said, his fiancée nodding in agreement with him.

"Or that I gave her up for adoption," Carlotta said slowly.

"Better you didn't," Beckett said quickly. "But I understand why you didn't do either. You are a good mother, which she needs at this point. Your doctor," she said then, to change the subject and bring up something she'd wondered. "Who-"

"I had multiple doctors," Carlotta said. "Sheryl was worried about us, and she managed to get me in to see pretty much every doctor they have at Lexington. So I guess she had the thought that with so many doctors, they couldn't kill them, it'd bring too much attention to themselves."

"They already have, but you're right," Castle said as there was a knock at the door.

"Officer Hastings, Rizzio," Beckett said after she'd checked the peephole, her hand on her gun. She let Hastings in, taking the bag that Rizzio handed her, nodding to him before he took up his station. "Castle? We're going to head back to the station Carlotta," she said once her fiancé had stood up. "Call for any reason, please."

"I will," the woman said. "Excuse me," she then continued, hurrying to the bedroom as the muffled sound of the baby crying came through the door.

"Anyone?" Beckett asked.

"Nothing suspicious," Hastings said. "We'll notify you the second something happens, if it does."

Beckett nodded once at that and then left the room with Castle, waiting to hear Hastings inside lock the door both below and above before she led the way down the hall. "This is really pissing me off," she commented as they stepped into the elevator.

"Yeah, usually we have something by now," Castle said.

"I'm hoping Esposito and Ryan managed to get something from the house," Beckett said. "Or else that license plate."

"Speaking of Ryan," Castle commented as her phone suddenly started to ring.

Pulling him to the side of the lobby, away from the entrance, Beckett answered her phone with it on speaker saying, "Please tell me you have something, anything."

"Yeah, we finally got word on the license plate, that was a dead end, plate's off a red BMW, it was stolen about three days ago," Ryan said.

"The car?" Castle asked.

"No, just the plate, the owner didn't notice it until yesterday when he was stopped for that," Ryan replied.

"So what do you have exactly?" Beckett asked.

"We have footage from one angle of the hallway where Spencer was staying, and we have a suspect," Ryan said.

* * *

"Okay, so who is it?" Beckett said as soon as she and Castle were in the bull pen and had reached Esposito and Ryan who were by the murder board.

"We asked the FBI to see if they could ID the guy from the bar, but they didn't have any luck with the facial scanner," Ryan said.

"But looking at the footage from the bar, Ryan noticed this guy," Esposito said, handing Beckett a picture.

In it a man was standing behind Carlotta, and Beckett frowned as she saw he had his hand on the woman's shoulder. "What's he doing in the footage?" she asked the two.

"He bumps into her, and apologizes or, says something to her," Ryan replied. "But I recognized him."

"How?" Beckett asked in surprise.

"His name is Keith Haupt, and I knew him in high school," Ryan said simply. When Castle and Beckett looked at him in surprise he said, "I know, I wasn't expecting that, but, he lives in DC now, and he's an aide, to the Representative from the state of Maine, Gordon Boyer."

"And is Representative Boyer going through a divorce or having marital troubles?" Castle asked.

"He is, but the other thing, he was the source of that noise that made Spencer turn her head, and allowed the blonde guy to switch drinks with her," Esposito said. He motioned for the others to follow him, and they went to his desk where he played the last of the angles they'd gotten from the bar's security cameras, showing Haupt stumbling against a woman and making her spill her drink.

"Faked," Beckett commented as the previously drunk man walked perfectly fine out of camera view after talking to the woman he'd bumped into.

"So they're working together," Castle said. "Have you tried to find him?"

"Well, right now Congress is on summer vacation, so we tried his personal numbers, weren't able to reach him," Ryan said. "But I left a few messages, saying I wanted to catch up."

"Don't let Gates find that out," Beckett commented. "And Representative Boyer?"

"He was in DC at the time this footage was shot," Esposito said. "And we tried contacting him as well, but he's on vacation in Canada with his and his wife's kids."

"Could be he's letting this happen now to put as much distance between himself and everything as he can," Castle said. "I wonder if he kept tabs on her, and when he found out she had the baby decided to plan this to help him in the divorce."

"Does he stand to lose a lot of money, possessions?" Beckett asked.

"Both, there's a pre-nup and if he's caught cheating…" Ryan said.

"Okay, we need to speak to Haupt and look at his financials and the Representative's as well," Beckett said.

"Haupt is not an issue, but Boyer?" Esposito asked.

"We'll figure it out," Ryan said quickly, standing up straight as he was looking at the elevator.

Turning her head, Beckett saw Lieutenant Serrano walking to Gates' office, and she watched the man go inside before the captain stepped out.

"Detective," Gates said, seeing Beckett watching her. "I have no idea why you're here Serrano, she's done the lie detector test; which she passed; and-" she started to say as Beckett closed the door behind her.

"She needs to be taken off this case," Serrano said suddenly, cutting her off.

"Excuse me? What right do you have to ask that?" Gates asked, narrowing her eyes at the man.

"She was just involved in a kidnap attempt and hostage situation, the Captain at IA wants her off this case, immediately," Serrano said simply.

Beckett studied the man, suddenly seeing that he wasn't really behind what he was saying; only saying it because he was ordered to.

"Both situations were out of her control," Gates said angrily. "Ms. Spencer was under the protection of two of my officers, who were unfortunately shot in their attempts to keep the woman and child safe. If Detective Beckett hadn't been there, they would likely both be dead."

"I know, I'm sorry, but those are my orders," Serrano said, suddenly looking miserable.

Gates picked up the phone, and dialed a number, soon saying, "Hal? What the hell are you… no I realize that she is under investigation, but she is not… I'm not, and I don't care who is pressuring you, but I am not taking one of my best detectives off this case." Slamming down her phone she said to Serrano, "Is there anything new in your investigation?"

"No," Serrano said simply before he left, shooting an apologetic look at Beckett.

"Sir?" Beckett asked. "Who's pressuring the IA?"

"Someone downtown, he didn't say who, but I would assume the Commissioner," Gates said. "With a possible suit against the NYPD, it would stand to reason. Have you come any closer to finding the killer?"

Beckett hesitated a moment, and then said, "We're focusing more on the rape at this point sir."

"Because the person orchestrating this and the rapist are the same person, I know," Gates said, sitting behind her desk. "You find him, you'll find the killer."

"We have two possible suspects now that worked together to drug Ms. Spencer," Beckett said. "One of them is a high school friend of Ryan's."

"Is there a conflict of interest?" Gates asked, looking up at her hearing that.

"He hasn't seen the man since high school, so I don't think there's much in the way of a friendship there," Beckett said.

"If you find him and bring him in, I'd like you to interrogate him," Gates said. "The last thing I need is IA looking into another of my detectives."

"Yes sir," Beckett said before she left and went over to her desk. "Someone's pushing IA to investigate me," she said as soon as she rejoined Castle and the boys in front of the murder board.

"Commissioner?" Ryan asked.

"No, someone else," Beckett said, looking troubled.

"Have they gotten any further looking into Wilder's suicide?" Esposito asked.

"No, but they just tried-" Beckett started to say.

"To kick you off the case, I could hear Gates yelling and figured it out," Castle said.

"You eavesdrop too much. Okay, so who's looking at the footage from the hallway? And where's the other angle? You mentioned there was one angle," Beckett asked.

"We have the footage set up right now," Ryan said, nodding to the room where the TV was on. "Do you want me to look at it, or look for Haupt?"

"You look at the financials," Beckett directed. "Espo, you look for Haupt. Sorry," she said quickly to Ryan.

"Not a problem," the detective said with a shrug.

"You want to talk about it?" Castle asked as they went into the room.

"There's not that much to say," Beckett said simply. "And I already told you about what happened." She played the footage and fast forwarded it after locating the room that Carlotta had been staying in, and then said, "I don't really want to think about it either, just get this case finished and go home to our daughter."

"I'll agree with you there," Castle said with a slight nod. "So she said she left the bar at about ten, how long do you think it took her to get up here?"

"It depends on the drug," Beckett said grimly, remembering when she herself had been given a date rape drug. "And the amount." When her fiancé quietly apologized she shook her head saying, "It needed to be asked. But I'll go as far as I need to, getting a set time might help out with any alibis we might get."

"There she is," Castle said quickly when he saw the woman on the screen.

Pressing play, Beckett watched with him as Carlotta walked to room 420, leaning against the wall as she went. "So she's already feeling the effects," she murmured. "And she goes in at ten seventeen. She was given a pretty good amount. What do you want to bet everyone just thought she was drunk?"

"That was a pretty nice bar, so I wouldn't be surprised," Castle commented as Beckett was writing the time down. He watched the time stamp, and continued to until he noticed movement in the right side of the screen. "There's the blonde guy."

"Just him though," Beckett said. "Damn it, I was hoping it'd be Haupt."

"He could know this guy," Castle said. "And we can see his whole face now, it fits the sketch."

"He got a key," Beckett said suddenly. "How the hell did he do that?" she said before she suddenly paused the footage and dialed Carlotta's number. She wasn't too surprised when it took a while for the woman to answer, and once she had quickly said, "I need to ask if you remember ever losing your room key at the hotel."

Castle waited as Beckett listened and then said to the woman on the other end, "No, nothing yet, but we are trying our best. Is Isabella… okay, great, bye." He watched her as she went to the door to speak with Ryan and Esposito.

"Guys," Beckett called. "Whoever the blonde guy is, or Haupt, or both, stole her key card to her room."

"He's in the footage?" Ryan asked.

"The blonde guy," Beckett corrected, knowing that he was talking about his friend. Going back into the room, she pressed play on the screen again, watching as the man opened the door slowly before looking inside, murmuring, "He's checking to make sure she's out."

"Wait, pause there," Castle said as the man turned to his left. "Look at the expression on his face."

Beckett was startled at the sight of it; it matched the miserable expression that Serrano had had in Gates' office. "So he was forced into it. Who's this?" she asked as someone appeared from the bottom left. With their back to the camera, she wasn't able to see the man's face, but said, "He's walking like the other guy is."

"Yeah, and that is a nice suit too," Castle said. "They're not with the interior decorators or the landscapers. We need the other angle there is, though how far down the hall do you think that camera is?"

Shaking her head since she obviously didn't know the answer, Beckett was quiet for a moment as they watched the second man clap the blonde man on the shoulder, and then disappear inside after the two had spoken quickly. She jabbed the fast forward button with her thumb, feeling more than a little sick thinking of what was going on inside the room at that point. She looked at the time, and felt worse with each hour that passed. When it was five thirty, the blonde man came back into view, and the other man; the rapist and Isabella's father; stepped out, keeping his head bent. "He's trying to hide," she said, looking at her fiancé to see his nod of agreement. She wasn't too surprised to see his disgust clearly on his face, and they watched the blonde block the other man from the camera. "Okay," she said slowly when they were gone from view. "I need to get a picture of the man, and we need the other camera's footage."

"They didn't know about it," Castle said. "If the camera is where I think it is-"

"We'll be able to see his face," Beckett said, nodding. She went outside to her desk, and picking up the phone, dialed the number of the hotel that she knew then by heart, not caring if the concierge was going to be annoyed by another call from them, that footage had become the most important evidence in their case.

* * *

Setting aside the cup he'd just had some coffee in, Castle looked over at his fiancée as she came into the break room asking, "Anything?"

"No, looks like I was right telling Gates we needed to stick with this rape instead of the murders," Beckett said, slight frustration in her tone.

Nodding, since he had expected that after Gates had assigned Esposito and Ryan to focus on the two murders, Castle said, "Nothing from the hotel yet?"

"Not yet, and they didn't bother to pick up last time, so I think that's all I can call," Beckett said simply, taking her phone out of her pocket.

"Did anyone go back to that so called lair?" Castle asked.

Gesturing with her head out the window where two officers were walking out of the elevator, Beckett replied, "That would be a no, Gates ordered them back, as there hasn't been any sign of the two men from the convenience store footage. Really not happy I forgot that."

"Gates or you?" Castle asked.

"Gates, really unhappy," Beckett said. "But there's a little too much to this case."

"There is," Castle said. "I know," he said when she looked at him. "Me agreeing with Gates; weird. But let the boys take care of the evidence we have from the murders, they might have a better chance finding the guy with the tattoos."

"And the one that looks like the judge," Beckett said. "But I can't do much without that hallway footage, so I was helping them, calling around the prisons here. I told them they might want to check out some prisons around DC, since-"

"That's a connection between him and the father," Castle finished for her. At her nod he said, "And now?"

"Now I'm going to call our daughter, because they pushed me to take a break," Beckett said. "And it's almost five, I need to call her."

Castle smiled and turned to lean against the counter as she stood nearer the sink, enough apart from him to keep from looking suspicious, but close enough for him to hear. "What about going home?" he asked.

"I'll give the hotel one last call, if they don't have the footage and the boys don't need me, then I'll go," Beckett replied. "Hey Alexis, just wanted to call since I had the chance. I'm not sure when I'll be back, but your dad should be soon. Great, thanks," she said to his daughter before putting the phone on speaker. "Hi sweetie," she said as she heard the phone change hands.

"Hey sweetheart," Castle said quickly before their daughter spoke.

"Hi Mommy, Castle," Julia said quickly. "You're not coming home yet?"

"Soon," Beckett said in a promise. "How were lunch and the store?"

"Uh-uh, I wanna tell when you come home," Julia said quickly. "But it was a lot of fun. I can't wait to show you what I got at the store, and stuff for you too!"

"We can't wait either," Castle commented. "Is your grandfather there?"

"Yeah, he's here, he's ordering dinner," Julia said. "That's a surprise!" she said rapidly before either of them could speak. "So don't ask a question, 'cause you're too good asking Mommy."

"Hey, me too," Castle said, pretending to be insulted. He smiled when the little girl giggled on the other end, then said, "I'll probably come home soon and-"

"You don't hear the stories or see the stuff or know what dinner is until Mommy comes back," Julia interrupted him.

"Wow, okay, so I'll come back, but I won't know anything," Castle said, trying not to laugh at how serious her voice had been.

"We'll hear soon enough," Beckett teased him. "Okay, I'll let you go sweetie, so I can see what I need to do before I come home. I love you."  
"Love you Mommy," Julia said quickly.

"I love you too Julia, see you soon," Castle said.

"Kay, bye!" their daughter called before hanging up the phone.

Sighing, Beckett hung up before looking out at Ryan and Esposito still at their desks. "I'll-" she started to say when her phone rang, seeing it was the hotel.

Castle watched as she spoke to the concierge, surprised when Beckett frowned at whatever they had to say. He was quiet until she hung up and then asked, "Bad news?"

"Basically," Beckett commented. "We're probably not going to get the footage until tomorrow."

"Did they say why?" Ryan said from the doorway, making the two jump. "Sorry, needing a caffeine fix."

As Castle moved away from the coffee, Beckett explained, "Their system was hacked into."

Waiting for her to say more, Castle then replied, "And just that footage was tampered with?"

"In the archives, yes," Beckett said. "Also, they didn't have it set up like Fort Knox security-wise, so a hacker was able to slip right in. But here's the funny thing, they didn't delete the footage. They hid it."

"Why would they do that?" "Hide it where?" Ryan and then Castle asked.

"To the first, I have no clue; maybe to buy some time because they couldn't delete it," Beckett said. "The second is what they're having someone from the FBI figure out."

"Does that mean they're going to get involved?" Ryan asked.

"No," Beckett replied simply. "They're just going to try and find out who did it, and send us the recovered footage… whenever they can find it. They need to look through a lot of data, as that hotel saves up it archives for two years, in case of something like this; for investigators."

"Great, so I guess I'll be heading back to the tattoos," Ryan said, frowning briefly.

"I'll join you, I could use some coffee too though," Beckett said quickly.

"You don't need to," Esposito said, coming inside then. "I found our tattoo man." As the others were following him out he put a picture up on the murder board and said, "Say hello to Juan Ortega, he's a contract killer."

"Handy with a blade?" Castle asked, recognizing the top of the dagger tattoo on the man's temple, which they'd seen in the bodega's security footage.

"The bodega owner?" Beckett asked before Esposito could answer.

"I'll have to go down to the bodega, and show him, and very handy with a blade, though he was sentenced to Riker for shooting a man," Esposito answered them both. "But there's a note in his prison records that he got two more years for slashing a former inmate, didn't kill him, but left him with a pretty bad scar," he said, putting up a picture of the victim, the white line of the cut clearly visible.

"Okay, and can we track him down?" Beckett asked.

"Afraid not, he's been off grid for… about a month now," Esposito said.

"I really wish our first vic hadn't gotten her cousin to pose as her lover," Beckett said. "But… honestly, Juan, Johnny?"

"I was thinking that too," Castle said. "But probably easier to do that, since he wouldn't get confused."

"Have you checked Ortega's financials?" Beckett said, remembering their dead end with Haupt as he'd had nothing in his account that might point to him having been hired to help the blonde man distract Carlotta.

"I did, one deposit, just before he's gone, and one withdrawal," Esposito said, taking a paper from LT. "Thanks man," he said to the officer before handing the paper to Beckett.

"Ten thousand," Beckett said. "Okay, so he's living on cash, which will make him that much harder to find. Does he have any known associates? Friends from jail that look like the judge?"

"We were checking for that too," Ryan told her.

"But there's something about what you said, looking at prisons near DC," Esposito said. "Turns out Ortega did some time in Sussex I ten years ago, manslaughter charge."

"How is he getting manslaughter when it sounds like it should be murder one?" Castle asked.

"Good lawyers; remember he gets paid," Esposito pointed out. "But I need to contact the prison, talk to the warden and guards from that same time period."

"Ryan, can you help him with that?" Beckett asked. When he nodded quickly in response, she said, "I'll help out and-"

"We've got this Beckett," Esposito said, interrupting her.

"Guys-" Beckett was going to say.

"No, he's right, we do," Ryan said. "We'll probably have to wait to contact the guards, and the records might not take that long either. We'll put an APB out on Ortega, but without the other footage, not much all three of us can do."

"Or four of us, I'll see you guys tomorrow morning, in the hopes we get something else," Castle commented. "Someone call me though, if we do. Night."

"Night," Beckett said, shaking her head. She turned back to the boys, and said, "You guys need to stop doing that."

"Unlikely, we're looking out for our _sobrina_ ," Esposito said.

"I'm sure she'll want to see her mother," Ryan commented.

"I'm going," Beckett said, smiling slightly. She went back to her desk, checking her cell phone as she'd gotten a text as she'd been talking to her partners. She replied to Castle's message of, _At the park, see you in 5, suspense is killing me_ , fighting back another smile as she wrote back to him; _You'll survive, on my way_. "Night you guys, I owe you," she called to Ryan and Esposito.

"Night, we'll text," Ryan said first.

"Whatever we get," Esposito then added.

Her bag on her shoulder, Beckett went down to the lobby and walked out, heading to the park after she'd crossed the street. She was nearly to the corner of the block before it, when she heard footsteps behind her. She'd been hearing them since she'd crossed the street, but they didn't go any faster or slower. She waited a moment, and sliding aside to a shadowy alcove, waited for the person to pass before she drew her gun. "Hold it right there!" she said before the man stopped abruptly. "Hands up, don't move," she told him.

"It's me Detective," the man said.

"Lieutenant Serrano? What the hell are you doing following me?" Beckett asked, holstering her gun but keeping her hand near it.

"I'm sorry, but I needed to speak to you," Serrano said.

"About the investigation," Beckett stated.

"Yeah, not about it itself, but what was mentioned today, I need to warn you," Serrano said.

"What are you talking about?" Beckett asked impatiently, irritated by the man's confusing words.

"There's someone, higher up, I don't know how high this goes, but pretty high up. They want to fire you and you would have lost your job sooner if there was any justification doing that," Serrano said.

"How much sooner?" Beckett asked, a little startled at that information.

"About six months ago? Seven? I don't know how long ago, but they want you gone," Serrano said.

"They or someone?" Beckett asked, calling him on his use of both words.

"Look, all I know is that you need to be careful with your case," Serrano replied, looking around nervously. "If they find something wrong, they'll charge you, fire you and throw you into jail; evidence or no."

"And my child?" Beckett asked, a little concerned with how serious he was telling her that.

"The city would take her back," Serrano said, frowning. "It's why I had to tell you, I know what happened to her, don't want to know that I just let this happen without giving you warning."

"I'll take care of myself Serrano, go, before someone sees you speaking to me and you get in trouble," Beckett said, her voice somber. The man started to walk away, and she called after him, "Thanks for telling me." She had no idea if the man had heard her; instead he walked away in the fading light before she finally made herself go to the park.

"What is it?" Castle asked, jumping up when he saw her and her expression.

"We can talk about it on the way," Beckett said, shaking her head. "I need to see our daughter. Now."

Nodding, Castle led her to the curb and hailed a cab after a few failed attempts. When they were inside, he closed the divider, watching her and waiting for her to speak.

Beckett was quick to tell him what Serrano had said, and wasn't surprised when Castle looked angry when she finished speaking.

"So what do you do now?" he asked her as they were both quiet.

"Now we go home and see Julia," Beckett said, taking his hand and entwining their fingers tightly. "And as for the warning, we take note of it, and I need to be careful of what I do right now, or else… we'll lose her."


	15. Thoughts Are Flying Through Your Head

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The title of this chapter is a lyric from the song Simple as That by Paul McCartney, from the 1993 re-release of his album Pipes of Peace.

"Mommy! Mommy!" Julia cried when she heard the door open and her mother and Castle walked inside. She got down from the couch and rushed to her mother, hugging her tightly around the waist.

"What's wrong?" Beckett asked in slight concern at her daughter's slightly panicked tone as she picked the little girl up. She wasn't surprised when Julia didn't say anything, and she kissed her cheek asking, "Are you okay?"

"Are you?" Julia asked as she nodded.

"I'm fine," Beckett said firmly. "Did you think something happened to me?"

"Yeah, but you are kay?" Julia queried.

"She's fine," Castle said, having put Beckett's work bag in the closet. "Just a little bit of a rough day today."

"Did you solve the case?" Jim asked.

"Unfortunately no, but we could be close," Beckett said, shaking her head slightly when her father looked surprised. "So, any news?" she asked, to get the subject away from work. As she and Castle had gone into the lobby of his building, Ryan had called to let her know that Haupt had contacted him, and was going to come into the station in the morning, as he had money that he'd been given to stage the distraction in the bar. And they'd also found the other man that Ortega was working with. A man who only went by the name Gillette, they couldn't find him; which was no surprise to any of them; and had put out an APB for him as well. She had told the boys to head home since there wasn't much else they could do, and she and Castle had continued up to his loft, deciding to leave the case alone for the night; so they could focus on their family. She shook herself then to listen to Julia as she started to describe the lunch she and Alexis had had.

"Padma was nice," the little girl was saying as Beckett was carrying her to the couch to sit. "And she talked to us before lunch."

"What did she say?" Castle asked. He was surprised when Julia climbed over to his lap; since he was sitting next to his fiancée; and hugged him tightly.

"I didn't say hi to you too," Julia said. "I asked about if she went to India, she said she did."

"And I guess Edith had warned her both of us were going to ask about that," Alexis commented. "Well, Edith and I, she hadn't known Julia was going to be there. But she thought Julia was very cute, especially when she asked if her _bindi_ was real."

"You asked that?" Beckett asked, smiling as her daughter came back to her then.

"Yeah, I thought maybe she wore it for decoration, 'cause Alexis said girls do that," Julia said, frowning slightly. "They laughed, but Padma said it was real 'cause she was Hindu."

"Interesting to hear, where does she worship?" Castle asked his daughter.

"There's a temple her family goes to about three blocks from their home, it's why her parents chose their apartment," Alexis replied. "But she talked to us about India, where she goes, and we asked about the food while we ate. She was surprised to hear we'd tried it already."

"Did she mention what's okay for someone to eat that hasn't had Indian before?" Beckett asked, nodding to Julia.

"Yeah, a couple dishes, she texted them to me," Alexis said, holding up her phone. "And she's going to send me a recipe her mother has for _ganji_ , I might try to make it. Or you Dad, if you want to give it a shot."

"I can take a stab at it," Castle said. "So what did she say about New Delhi and Mumbai?"

"She asked if I had a travel book already, and Julia told her which one," Alexis said, ruffling her sister's hair since she was sitting on the other side of Beckett. "And I was so glad I brought markers with me, she helped note a couple places through the whole country we should go to."

"Where's the book?" Castle asked.

"Upstairs, I'll bring it down later if you want to take a look at it," Alexis said.

"Mommy, Castle!" Julia suddenly cried, making them both jump. "I forgot to say! Paul's sick!"

Beckett looked at her father and Alexis, but it was Martha; coming down the stairs; who answered their questioning looks for them.

"She's right, Alexis got an alert from his official website, he's ill with something in Japan where he's doing his tour," she explained.

"But he's receiving treatment," Alexis said quickly as Julia's chin was wobbling, tears in her eyes. "And he is getting better."

"She's right honey," Jim said. "He'll be okay and they said he's responding well to their treatment."

"I don't want him to be sick," Julia said, trying not to cry as her mother cuddled her close and Castle ran his hand over her hair. "He's got a little girl, I don't want Beatrice's daddy to be sick either."

"They weren't lying sweetie," Beckett said soothingly. "If they say he's getting better he will."

"And you know he'll get the best care, the best doctors and everything," Castle said. "Like you did when you got your tonsils out. A lot of people cared about you, and a lot of people care about Paul."

"Oh, there's dinner, Richard?" Martha said as the doorbell rang.

"At least now we can find out about what the big surprise for dinner is," Castle joked, kissing Julia's cheek and gently pinching her chin to her soft giggle.

"Mommy," the little girl said as Castle was getting dinner with Jim's help.

"Yes?" Beckett asked, not surprised her daughter's tone of voice was still somber.

"Are you still in trouble at work?" Julia asked.

"I don't know," Beckett said simply. "But you know what I think would be better right now?"

"Food?" Julia asked as the scent of the meal wafted from the kitchen where Castle had taken the bag the deliveryman had given him. "I'm hungry."

"That's true," Beckett said with a laugh as Castle came over. She stood and let him take their daughter before saying, "I was thinking more of the things you got at the store."

"Padma went with us," Julia then said, suddenly brightening up at the subject. "And helped us buy things," she continued. "Can we show them?" she asked Alexis, her grandfather and Martha.

"After we eat," Martha said, helping her wash her hands as Castle held her. "And then we'll have a little show."

"We will?" Julia asked as she watched Castle wash his hands after setting her down.

"Well, if your gram narrates it, I think that yes, it will be," Castle said.

"If you got a new _salwar kameez_ , then it actually might be a show," Beckett said. "But since I don't think you'll eat while we're talking about the store, what did you do when you came back home?" she asked as she dished up the Italian food onto a plate for Julia.

Gathering around the table once everyone had food and drink, Castle said, "It'll be interesting to do this after we're married," to his fiancée.

"A family dinner?" Beckett asked with a smile. "Well, we are a family, so it counts."

"So what will you be up to tomorrow?" Castle asked after he'd nodded in agreement to what she'd said. He directed the question to Alexis and Julia; the latter trying to suck her Alfredo like she would spaghetti.

"Sweetie, I told you it's not polite to do that," Beckett said a little sternly. "Eat like normal." She then looked at Alexis and asked, "Do you have any plans for tomorrow? Or can you watch her?"

"I said I would, I don't really have anything set because a lot of my friends are on vacation now or home out of town," Alexis explained. "So tomorrow I was thinking about going to the Children's Museum."

"Sounds good to me," Castle said. "Been a while since she's been there. What about Friday?"

"I haven't thought that far ahead, but maybe you have suggestions?" Alexis asked, looking back and forth between her dad and Beckett.

The rest of the meal, Julia watched with a small smile on her face as the others talked about what she and her sister could do together. She squirmed a little as she thought of what her mother had said, of them already being a family, though there still hadn't been a wedding. She sighed a little thinking of that, not realizing that she was frowning at her plate, or that there was a pause in the conversation at that exact moment.

"Are you okay sweetheart?" Castle asked, a little troubled when he looked at her.

"Yeah, you look kind of sad Jules, what's wrong?" Alexis added.

"I… you can't get married when we go to the beach?" Julia blurted out after seeing the concerned looks on her family's faces, squirming again as she thought that. "When we go for the holiday?"

"I'm afraid not sweetie," Beckett said, not that surprised when the others left that for her to answer. "But soon, we promise."

"You want to get married right?" Julia asked, her voice suddenly high pitched as Alexis and Martha took the plates since they'd finished eating.

"Easy Julia, we do," Castle assured her. "And we will the second we can."

"Why are you asking again?" Beckett asked, picking Julia up to carry her to the family room as Castle followed. She was a little startled when her dad, instead of coming with them, helped finish clearing the table. But she realized that he wanted to give them privacy, so she sat on the couch and looked at hers and Castle's daughter, waiting for a reply.

"Because, I like having a big family," Julia finally said, not looking at them. She looked up at her mother when Beckett cupped her cheek, turning her head, and she mumbled, "I want us to be really a big family."

"I know, and we will, like I said I promise we will," Beckett replied to that.

"I do too, I'm ready to marry your mom, whenever we can," Castle assured her.

"Now," Beckett said after she and Castle had shared kisses with their daughter. "We can see what you bought at the store."

"Come on Jules," Alexis said, walking over then. She took Julia's hand, and led her upstairs to her room as Martha followed, squeezing her sister's hand to let her know through that that she agreed with what she'd said about them being a family.

Leaning back against the couch, Beckett looked at her fiancé and said, "I'm surprised."

"Me too, but it makes sense, when her family was only two, and one of those was her," Castle commented. "Now she has parents, a sister, and grandparents. I don't blame her for wanting to make it real."

Beckett smiled slightly at that, since at the same time he'd put his arm around her shoulder, holding her close. She took his hand and squeezed it saying, "I agree, but we'll get to that point." She smiled wider when he nodded enthusiastically, and leaned over, kissing him very gently on the lips, since her father was still in the kitchen and would be able to easily see them. She was startled by the sudden rush that kiss provided, and pulling away from her fiancé, she was relieved by the sudden darkening of his eyes, but she knew they had their family with them still, so she pulled away enough as they leaned against the back of the couch. Though they waited sitting a little stiffly, she still held his hand, and it squeezed hers gently, as if to reassure her that she was not alone in her abrupt desire as they heard their daughters and his mother coming down the stairs. She found herself eager for later, but shook herself mentally at that, and with a slight frown, pushed away the thought as she smiled at Julia saying, "So many packages, really, you guys are all spoiling her," as the little girl was carrying a few small boxes before she set them next to her and Castle on the couch. "Who's first?" she asked.

"The clothes!" Julia said enthusiastically as she opened the first box and pulled out a deep green _kameez_ with a pattern in darker green, and a black _salwar_. "Martha got this for me."

"She said thank you," Castle's mother said quickly when Beckett was about to speak. "Show her the one your grandfather bought you."

"I think this one she could wear outside the home if she wanted to," Jim commented as Julia held out the white _kameez_ that had a band of cerulean blue at the hem. "Since it looks like a dress."

"It does," Castle agreed, looking at the neckline, which was the same as a sleeveless dress with a short collar around the neck. "It's pretty, the _salwar_ is nice too."

"I like the color," Julia said with a wide smile. "Do you like it Mommy?"

"I do, but you know, if you want to wear these outside you could. I'm not sure about playing with them though," Beckett said, holding the _kameez_ in her hands.

"They're loose enough she could. And good for this weather," Alexis commented.

"Alright, just as long as you're not too rough I think you can wear them wherever you want," Beckett said. "Except for school. So, this one?" she asked, tapping the last of the three boxes that Julia had set next to her. She was surprised when the little girl picked it up, handing it to her and then she looked at everyone else, seeing they were all watching her. "Castle-" she began, annoyance in her voice, turning to her fiancé.

"I just suggested that maybe if you had one to wear, you might like it enough to wear it around the house," he said quickly. "Just try it on, and see what you think."

Breathing in deeply, Beckett glanced at their daughter, and saw that she was watching her hopefully, making her lose her annoyance instantly. She leaned over and shared a kiss with Julia before saying, "I guess I'll be right back."

"You better hope she likes what we picked out Dad," Alexis said after Beckett had closed the door to his room.

"I know, well, I thought since you were there," Castle said to Jim. "You'd know what your daughter would like. And you'd be a big help too Julia."  
"She'll like it, it's comfortable and not fancy, fancy," the little girl said, leaning against him as they waited.

Opening the door to the room a few minutes later, Beckett wasn't surprised when Castle looked over to her first, but was when he sat up straight suddenly. "Okay, I'll admit, this is very comfortable," she said as the others noticed her fiancé's reaction and looked at her as she walked over to the couch. "I can see why you like these Alexis."

"Do you like the colors?" Julia asked, a wide smile on her face as her mother sat down on the couch.

"I do, did you pick them?" Beckett asked, taking Julia in her arms.

"Yeah," the little girl replied, nodding her head. "And Grandpapa said this kind of _kameez_ was good 'cause you would like the way it is here at the top."

"You're right," Beckett said to her dad. "Actually, I think I might take this to the beach house with us for the Fourth."

"I was going to take mine," Alexis said, showing her red and white _kameez_ she'd picked out.

"Mine too," Martha said, holding up her bright blue and bright green patterned _kameez_.

"Now the other stuff!" Julia said excitedly.

"I'll-" Beckett started to say as she began to stand up.

Grabbing her hand to stop her, Castle leaned over and whispered into her ear, "Leave it on."

Looking at him, Beckett couldn't help smirk for a moment as his eyes went down her form. It slipped off her face when she remembered earlier, and she quickly glanced down at her _kameez_. The fabric was simple; a brighter blue color that had green and silver around the hem of the neckline, the _salwar_ was solid blue, matching the top. It was simple, but as she'd said, comfortable, though she looked at the length of blue fabric that had come with it, and said, "What do I do with this?" to Alexis.

"I usually don't use those," she replied as Julia was going to Castle with a thin, small box. "But I guess you're supposed to drape them over the shoulders or arms."

"And this?" Castle asked Julia.

"For you," the little girl said, patting the top of the box with her hand. "Open it."

Taking off the lid, Castle saw the dagger inside and said, "Kind of small, unless this is a letter opener?"

"It is, I picked up one myself, but more to put it on display. For the hilt, mine has a temple etched on it," Jim said. "Julia wanted to get one for you, and Alexis helped her choose it."

"Thank you everyone then," Castle said, taking the knife from its sheath. "Nice," he said, nodding as he saw the blade was not honed too sharply. "And I like the hilt design you picked out for me," he said to Alexis and Julia who were watching him as he studied the carved image of a multiple armed Shiva.

"And this is for you and Castle," Julia then said to her mother, handing her a tiny soapstone carving of Shiva and Parvati. "I bought it with my money."

"Thanks so much sweetie," Beckett said, hugging her daughter to her after taking the figurine.

"Is this our wedding present?" Castle asked as he hugged Julia after.

"No," Julia said, shaking her head furiously. "This is just 'cause."

"Is that it? Did you get anything else?" Beckett asked the little girl.

"Just some incense," Julia replied. "Now what?"

"Now we get everything put away," Beckett commented, getting Julia's _salwar-kameez_ put away in their boxes before she set them and the figurine on the table. She held up the last item, touching the lotus carved on the bottom. "It's nice, but do you want it in your room?"

"Can always take it to the beach house," Castle commented, standing next to her. "Or to…"

"You mean to your new place," Alexis commented. When her dad and Beckett turned to her, she couldn't help laughing at the stunned expressions on their faces.

"Honestly Richard, you didn't think we could figure out that this loft would be a little crowded once you two got married," Martha said. "Also, you left out the listings in the _Ledger_ the other day; we saw the one you two had circled."  
"We… we would like you to move in with us," Beckett said after she and Castle had exchanged a glance.

"But I also was thinking about letting you two-" he then started to say quickly

"Julia told us," Alexis said. "When we told her we knew the secret she mentioned that you would find a place with rooms for us, but you'd let us keep the loft; if we wanted to."

"Sorry," Julia whispered, looking up at them as she was standing next to her mother.

"It's okay," Beckett reassured her. "So, would you guys like to move in with us?"

"No," Martha said. "This gives me an opportunity Richard," she said to her son. "To have a place of my own. And you'll have your own little family, there's no need to crowd the place."

"But I would like to move in with you," Alexis said hesitatingly.

"That's great," Beckett said. When Castle's daughter looked at her in surprise she smiled saying, "I mean that, because I would love it if Julia could have her sister in the same home, well, while you're not at school. And also because we would love to have you living with us too, you are part of this family, so, it makes sense you'd share our new home with us."

"I might come back some weekends," Alexis said with a smile at what her father's fiancée had said about family. "When I can, and spend time with my little sister."

"And with me having an extra room, I can have my granddaughters stay here with me some of those same weekends," Martha commented. "Let you two have some alone time."

"We are sorry about not telling you Mother, Alexis, we were just…" Castle started to say before trailing off, looking at his fiancée.

"We were just worried that you might not be happy to leave or… just not happy that we would need to look for another place," Beckett said, trying to explain the reason she and Castle had kept things secret.

"I think we understand," Martha commented. "But luckily you didn't want to shut us out completely from your lives. I would have thought you were if Julia hadn't mentioned you were trying to find a place with four or five rooms."

"Have you seen any place you like?" Jim asked, having been listening to the conversation.

"Not yet, there was a place friends of his were going to sell, really close to Central Park," Beckett said. "But we would have had to decide on it too soon, so we had to pass on it. But we're hoping maybe that place you saw in the _Ledger_ might be good."

"It sounds like it," Alexis said. She then said; for Jim's sake; "Four bedrooms, five baths, the space sounds like a lot, that building has a pool, and it's got a good security system. And it's close to Julia's school."

"Pretty close, it's equidistant between the school and Central Park, so we'd still need to take her via cab. But it's promising," Castle said.

"Have you looked at pictures of it online?" Martha asked.

"We have," Beckett replied. "And the rooms are really nice. But, we're going to just look and see the pros and cons. So I hope someone can watch Julia on Saturday when we go?"

"I will," Martha said. "But why don't you take her?"

"Easier to do so without three of us there," Castle said. "I had to lie to the realtor, and say that I was helping her pick a new place, not we both are. It'll keep up the ruse better if we don't show up as a family."

"Well, whatever works I suppose," Martha said. "Now, I will get dessert, some sweets from India that Alexis bought for us at the shop, with Padma's help. Decide what to do while I grab them."

"Did you sleep with her?" Beckett asked Castle as Julia had gone to her grandfather.

"No, she's twenty years older than I am," Castle replied easily. He watched his fiancée's relieved expression flit across her face and wrapped his arm around her; slightly startled to feel the fabric of the _kameez_ was silk; and said, "You don't really need to worry about meeting my exes you know."

"It's more I don't want to have to work with your exes, like your interior decorator," Beckett commented.

"I got someone new," Castle said quickly. When his fiancée looked at him in surprise he said, "I did, he's the person who got my former interior decorator for me, and you'll like him, he's pretty nice. And he's married, so I won't need to worry," he said, mumbling the last under his breath, jumping when Beckett nudged him in the side at that.

"Still heard you," she said quietly. "So he'll work with us at our new place?"

"And the Hamptons, he was surprised I wanted to change it, but when I explained how long ago it had last been decorated, he understood," Castle said. As his mother was coming over he then quickly said, "I told him about us, he won't say a word."

Shooting a look at him, Beckett said rapidly, "I'll have to trust you on that," before turning her attention to his mother.

"Did we decide what we're going to do?" Martha asked, setting down a platter on the coffee table.

"Can we play games?" Julia asked.

Looking at her watch, Beckett nodded saying, "Sure, go ahead and pick out a couple, since we have the time."

"Can we play Mousetrap now?" Julia asked eagerly.

"You didn't play last night?" Martha asked as Beckett and Castle nodded to their daughter, and Julia took Alexis to his office.

"Too many pieces to put together," Castle explained. "And we didn't have much time."

"Are you going to stay Dad?" Beckett asked.

"I will, it's funny though, your mom and I would do the same with you," Jim said.

"I told you Dad, we try and space out watching movies now," Beckett said. "But that's mainly because there are enough of us to play."

"We can play this now," Julia said, holding the game box to her chest.

"I'll set it up," Castle said. "With your help Alexis."

"Me too!" Julia cried, tugging on his shirt.

"And you too sweetheart, let's go," Castle said, going over to the table with them.

Watching them for a moment, Beckett then said, "Did you ask your grandpapa about India, Julia?"

"She did," Jim said, as Julia's head popped up from the game pieces and she was about to speak. "And I would love to go with you. But you don't have a set date for that trip?"

"It might be a year or two, we'll need to see," Castle said as his mother, Jim and Beckett came to the table then. "But we'll go."

There was some silence for a while as everyone was watching Castle putting the game together, and Alexis finally said, "If you're wondering about the dessert, Padma said they're called Cham chams or else chum chums."

"They're pretty," Julia said, since the sweets in the box came in pink, yellow and white. "Can I have one Mommy?"

"Let's split one," Beckett said, picking up a yellow one and splitting it in half. "And I'll try it first, since I'll know if you'll like it or not." She took a bite as the others were taking their own pieces, and started to hand the sweet to Julia when she grabbed a pink one. "Castle?" she asked, handing the half to him. When he didn't answer, frowning at the instructions for the game, she smiled and shook her head before slipping the candy into his mouth.

Looking up at her, Castle handed his fiancée the instructions and shook his head saying after he'd eaten the sweet, "Thanks. But you want to try and take a look at that?"

"We can wait to play it," Alexis said, looking at her sister.

"Is it hard to put together?" Julia asked.

"Let me see if I can help," Beckett said with a slight smile as he took a stick with pegs on the sides of it.

With both Castle and Beckett working together, they had the game together faster than he would have had working on his own, and he looked the game board over when they were finished, shaking his head. "Let's just hope this works," he said to his daughter.

"I know, but the one time we played was fun," Alexis said, smiling sheepishly.

"You only played one time?" Jim asked as they took turns rolling the dice to see who would go first.

"It fell apart, and Dad gave up on putting it together again after that," Alexis said. "But with more of us now maybe you'll change your mind…?

"We'll see," Castle commented.

Julia was the first to go, and the game was played relatively quickly, with them eventually setting off the mousetrap, everyone around the table, watching and waiting for the trap to fall on the mice underneath it. It worked almost all the way, Castle having to help the man jumping land in the bathtub.

"Okay, so much better than the first time we played," he commented as he started to take the game apart.

"So we can play more?" Julia asked pleadingly.

"We'll see," Beckett said. "For now let me wash your hands-"

"I can take her," Jim said, picking his granddaughter up from her chair. "I need to head back home," he told Julia was he watched her rub her hands in soap at the kitchen sink.

"I wish you didn't have to Grandpapa, do you have to go to work?" the little girl asked.

"I do, but I'll see you soon," Jim promised. When she had dried her hands he carried her to the door and said goodnight to his daughter, Julia and the others before saying goodbye. He stepped out into the hall, and was surprised when Castle came out, calling his name. "Something wrong?" he asked.

"No, I just wanted to let you know I'm really glad you're going to come to India with us, whenever we do go," Castle told him. "Because there are more of us to look out for them over there."

"I can take care of myself Castle," Beckett said as she stepped outside then. She smiled when Castle didn't really react to what she'd said, and she turned to her dad, about to speak when he did so first.

"Anything new in that investigation?" Jim asked.

"No, but that's a good thing, since it means they're not finding any new victims," Beckett said. "So I'm hopeful. But I just wanted to grab you Castle; Julia really does need to go to bed."

"Right, goodnight Jim, thanks for coming," Castle said.

"Night Dad," Beckett said again as he left. She smiled slightly and said, "I am glad for that though. You and my dad with us in India; since there's no way I can carry a weapon into the country, and I don't really want to either anyway."

Nodding, Castle took her hand and led her back inside and once the door was closed and locked asked softly, "How are you?"

"Okay, I haven't really thought about it that much; I was lucky; but I… I hate that this is hanging over me," Beckett said. "Especially since whomever it is is apparently so determined to get me fired." She wasn't surprised when in reaction to that, Castle pulled her into his arms and held her tightly. She pressed her cheek against his and murmured, "But it won't happen, it can't."

Not replying to that; since he would have said the same thing in a desperate attempt to keep optimistic as well; Castle leaned down slightly, and kissed her, not realizing that his mother was coming down the stairs to look for them.

"I hate to break this up," Martha said, smiling slightly as the two turned to look at her in surprise. "But Julia's already in the tub."

"Right, we better go," Beckett said, having to pull herself from Castle's hold as he wasn't letting her go. She went up the stairs, going into Alexis' room and hearing her daughter's laughter in the bathroom. "I guess you're taking care of that tonight," she said, smiling as she stood in the doorway with Castle, watching as Alexis washed Julia's back with a washcloth.

"She was falling asleep, so I decided to help out," the young woman replied, smiling as her dad had Beckett sit down. "Plus I wouldn't really recommend giving her a bath while you're dressed in that."

"I would take it off, but I think your dad likes it," Beckett commented.

"It's pretty Mommy," Julia said quickly as she was helped out of the tub by her sister. "Right?" she asked Castle as he was drying her off with a towel.

"You're correct," he said, taking the girls clothing from his fiancée and getting her into her pajamas. "Okay, now you're all set for bed."

"Do you want a story sweetie?" Beckett asked.

"I dunno," Julia said with a shrug.

"What about a story about Ganesha?" Alexis asked. When her sister shook her head no she frowned and said, "Shiva and Parvati?" She smiled at her dad and Beckett; who were sitting against the headboard with Julia; at the little girl's nod and went to grab her Hindu mythology book.

As the story unfolded, Beckett watched the little girl's head nodding forward repeatedly, until finally she was completely out. "Alexis," she said gently. When Castle's daughter stopped, she said to her fiancé, "We should have said goodnight before."

"We can say it right now too," he pointed out to her. He leaned over and kissed Julia on the forehead murmuring, "I love you sweetheart, sleep tight."

"I love you too Julia, sweet dreams," Alexis said, coming over at her dad's beckoning gesture, giving her sister a kiss on the cheek.

"And I love you Julia, so much," Beckett murmured, kissing her forehead and cheek before setting her down in the bed and tucking her in.

"I have to wonder," Martha commented; having said goodnight to Julia before she'd gone to get her parents from downstairs. "Who wants to fire you Kate?"

"You heard that?" Castle asked as he nodded to the coffee machine and his fiancée nodded in response.

"Of course, so, who?" Martha asked before turning to Beckett.

"I don't know, that's the thing," she replied. "But I was warned, by the Lieutenant investigating, Serrano, that someone was trying very hard to get me fired. I would guess it's the Commissioner."

"But why would he do that?" Alexis asked as she sat next to Beckett at the island.

"I'll say again I don't know but I suppose this investigation and possible suit gives the PD a black eye so…" Beckett said.

"But Julia will be alright won't she? I mean, she'll still be with you," Martha said.

"Mother-" Castle started to say.

"It's okay," Beckett told her fiancé gently. "And to that I'll say again, I don't know, it really depends on what happens with the investigation."

"There's got to be something you can do," Martha said. "Couldn't you get married now? That way Richard can adopt Julia, and you wouldn't have to worry about her being out of your custody, since you'll be married."  
"It's an interesting suggestion, but…" Beckett said before trailing off.

"But I'm sure they won't find anything if they haven't already," Alexis said.

"Kind of like our case right now," Beckett quipped as she was looking at her phone.

"Is that one of them?" Castle asked, handing his fiancée her coffee.

"It's Espo, he looked at Representative Boyer's financials instead of going home, but there's nothing that points to him paying our two suspects," Beckett said. "And that's all the Representative has in the way of accounts; he's an advocate for transparency."

"And that includes his money?" Alexis asked. "Is he from New York? Because I might vote for him."  
"I'm afraid not, he's from Maine, our neighbors to the north… east," Castle said, giving his mother and Alexis mugs.

"Well, it's early yet," Martha said as she walked over to the stairs with her coffee. "But I would like to read some of this wonderful play a student in my class has written. I might chose scenes to act out in the future. Goodnight, and Kate," she said after hugging her granddaughter. "Get some rest, things will be better in the morning with the rising sun; my father always said that, very theatrical. I don't know where I got it from."

"Goodnight Martha," Beckett said with a smile. "Okay, so, I feel like I could use some…" she began to say when she heard some light footsteps running, and Martha's heels on the wood of the upstairs hallway abruptly stop. "Julia?" she asked, getting off her chair and going to the bottom of the stairs as Castle's mother appeared, holding the teary-eyed little girl. "Sweetie, did you have a nightmare?" she asked worriedly, hoping that was not the case as she took her daughter and held her close as Castle came up to them.

Shaking her head, Julia hugged her mother tightly around the neck and whispered, "What happens if you get sick?"

Seeing Alexis and Martha exchanging confused looks, Beckett glanced at her fiancé, not too surprised to see an understanding expression on his face. She sat down at the table; since it was the nearest place to sit; and rubbed Julia's back saying, "That scares you sweetie?" When Julia nodded, she said, "You know that Paul will be-"

"But what if you get sick? Or Castle? What if everyone else gets sick?" Julia asked. "Sick like I was at the hospital for."

Sitting in the chair next to his fiancée's, Castle had Beckett turn their daughter so she was looking at him. "You know that if we do get sick, your grandparents and sister will take care of us," he told her; addressing her main fear of himself and her mother getting sick first. "So you won't be alone in helping us get better. That's what you do in a family, if someone gets sick, the others take care of them and help them."

"Plus," Alexis said, a little hesitatingly as she wasn't sure if she was going to intrude on the moment. "Jules, you can't really worry that much about us getting sick. It'll take over your life and you'll be so focused on that worry, you won't be able to do anything else."

"I just want everyone to be okay," Julia whispered, pressing close to her mother as Castle smoothed down her hair.

"Then keep that thought in your head sweetie," Beckett said.

"And know darling, we all want to be healthy as well, so we're taking care of ourselves," Martha commented.

"She's right," Castle said. "It's why she makes those smoothies," he then grimaced, laughing when his mother pushed the side of his head.

"She is right," Beckett said when Julia looked up at her. "So try not to worry about it."

"Kay, but, but Mommy, I'm the most worried about you," Julia whispered into her ear as her mother stood and went to the staircase.

Stopping with her foot on the first stair, Beckett took a moment to reply, "I know, but like Martha said, I'm doing everything I can to make sure I'm alright."

"Promise?" Julia asked as Beckett continued up the stairs.

"Promise," Beckett replied before she got to Alexis' room. She felt Castle's hand on her back and smiled at him slightly before she set their daughter back down on the bed. "Oh, I think everyone came to say goodnight," she said, a little started to see Martha and Alexis behind him.

"Goodnight part two," Castle said as Martha went to Julia first. He watched his mother whisper to the little girl; who gave a slight smile to her; before kissing her forehead. After Alexis had done the same, he went to her, and saw she was already getting sleepy so he told her, "Time to really sleep. And since this'll be the last thing you'll hear before you dream, I want your dream to be about us in a huge field."

"Where?" Julia asked with a smile as Castle was holding his arms wide apart.

"Anywhere, Spain, Ireland, India… they have fields in India right?" he faltered, looking at Alexis.

"I think so," she said as Julia gave a little giggle.

"Well, in this field," Castle said, turning back to the little girl. "Dream about yourself on a horse, riding to-"

"All of us," Julia said quickly.

"All of us riding then, going to wherever you want us to," Castle said. "I leave that up to you." With that he leaned down and murmured that he loved her before kissing her forehead and sharing a kiss with her.

"Can I dream about that Mommy?" Julia asked as Beckett sat down on the bed next to her.

"I think so, but we'll have to see what happens in your dreams. You'll tell us tomorrow morning?" Beckett said. She smiled when the little girl nodded, and leaned over, sharing a kiss with her, telling her after that she loved her.

"Love you Mommy. Mommy? I wanna go to Ireland in my dream," Julia said quickly as she reached out and touched the silver embroidered around the neckline of her _kameez_.

"Then go," Beckett said simply. "And sweet dreams Julia." With that she got up, and followed Castle to the doorway as Martha and Alexis stepped out into the hall. It took little time for Julia to fall back asleep, and as her fiancé closed the door she breathed out deeply. "I've been waiting for that to come up."

"Me too, the story did say that Paul was getting better right?" Castle asked Alexis.

"Is that really why she's scared about us now?" Martha asked.

"She's always been," Beckett said simply.

"But this story about Paul brought it back, before this I think she's been able to forget about her concern," Castle continued.

"They're right," Alexis said when her grandmother looked at her questioningly. "And he'll be fine; they were already talking about rescheduling his concerts in Japan and South Korea."

"Well, since now we have everything settled, I'll head to my room," Martha said. "Goodnight again, hopefully that will be the last time I say it tonight."

"Night," Alexis said before she went to the stairs.

After echoing her, Castle and Beckett followed her down to the kitchen where they cleaned up the mugs of cold coffee. He then asked Alexis, "How did you explain Julia was there at the lunch?"

"Edith thinks I'm her babysitter when you don't have anyone else to watch her," his daughter replied, looking at Beckett. "But she and Padma thought she was adorable."

"I'm not surprised, most people do," Castle said.

"She was asking a ton of questions about India, I tried to calm her down, but she kept on asking," Alexis said. "Luckily Padma didn't mind."

"Did she mention George Harrison while she was asking?" Beckett said.

"She did, but Padma was okay with that, since George was respectful of the culture and Hinduism too," Alexis said. "She even taught us a little Hindi after Julia said the only thing she knew to say was _Namasté_ , which you taught her Dad."

"Russian, Spanish and Hindi, interesting combination," Castle commented to his fiancée who was going to the couch.

"The Hindi might help her in India, though a lot of people know English right? Or, no?" Beckett asked before hesitating to sit.

"Not everyone does, but a lot do," Alexis said with a nod, following her dad over to the couch. "But I wanted to say also, Padma knows how to play the sitar, so I asked her for lessons, and she's agreed to teach me this summer and then again when we start school."

"Great to hear, I know you've been going crazy trying to teach yourself via the internet," Castle said.

"I'd love for Julia to be there for some lessons," Alexis said, looking back and forth from her dad to his fiancée. "To see if maybe she'd like to learn?"

"Since she was there with you when you and Padma were talking about it, that's fine," Beckett said with a smile. "But what do you want to bet-" she started to say to Castle.

"She wants a sitar," he finished for her. When she nodded he said, "Even if it's just there for decoration she'd still want one. Did that store have any?"

"It did," Alexis said. "Would you really get her one?"

"For Christmas," Beckett said quickly as her fiancé opened his mouth to speak. "For Christmas, Rick."

"Alright, alright," Castle said, holding up his hands as he sat next to her.

"I'm going to head to bed," Alexis said with a smile. "I might read a little, but at my desk."

"We'll see you in the morning," Beckett said. "Night."

Watching his fiancée walk to his room, Castle could feel his daughter's gaze on him, and he leaned back on the couch to look at her saying, "You made a good choice."

"I can see you think that," Alexis said. "Night Dad."

"Night kiddo," Castle said absently. He heard her soon going upstairs, before he stood and walked over to his room. "Hey," he said as he closed the door to find Beckett looking into the mirror above the dresser. He locked the door; deliberately; before going to her and standing behind her. "Okay?"

"Yeah, just, thinking," Beckett commented, smiling slightly as he kissed her shoulder through the blue silk over it.

"You're not mad I had them buy this for you are you?" Castle asked, looking up at her reflection.

"No, believe it or not, I did like this," Beckett said as she turned to face him. "But," she said as she pointed to him. "Don't think I'll wear this to the Precinct."

"Didn't think you would," Castle said with a shrug.

"Good," Beckett said. She then became a little serious and said, "Can we talk?"

"Sure," Castle said, wondering what was wrong as she went over to the couch opposite his bed. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing, just something I realized, something that's concerning me slightly," Beckett said as they sat. "Well… a little more than that."

"Is it me?" Castle asked, very confused at that point.

"More like both of us," Beckett said. When her fiancé's eyes shot down to her engagement ring she said quickly, "Not that, it's not that. No, what I meant was, the way we are when we're intimate." She then tried to joke and said, "Remember how I said I wondered if I shouldn't go to a sex therapist."

"Do you feel like it's getting bad?" Castle asked, hoping the panic in him wasn't showing up in his tone.

"The opposite," Beckett said.

"Why… wait, Kate, do you think we're having too much sex?" Castle said when he realized what she meant.

"Well, aren't we? Look at since Sunday night, we were together Monday night, yesterday night, this morning, and with you locking the door, you obviously want to again," Beckett said, gesturing towards the door.

"Only if you want to," Castle said quickly. "But you knew how we would be, because from our first night together, we've usually taken advantage of as many times as we can to be intimate. So what is this about exactly?"

"Okay, look, I have this concern that we're actually addicted to each other," Beckett said with a sigh, finally giving up. "And I don't mean in a romantic way, I mean, an actual addiction, but via sex. What if one of us stops needing the other like we do? What if I stop needing you and you look for…"

Taking his fiancée's hands as she trailed off, Castle squeezed them gently. "You know you can't really think about the what ifs in life right?" he asked her, being careful in his tone.

"Yes, I realize we just talked to Julia about that," Beckett said. "Without really saying that outright, but I know."

"That scares you," Castle said then, studying the expression on her face and then looking into her eyes deeply. "Have you had a relationship where that's happened?"

"A little after I'd started on patrol. I'd thought we were close, but he found me cold and whined that I always turned him down when he tried to get me to go to bed with him," Beckett said.

"How often did he ask you?" Castle queried.

"Whenever he saw me," Beckett said. "But the thing is we were together for about seven months and he was asking me after our first time together three months in."

"So he put too much pressure on you," Castle stated.

"Basically, he complained that I was, in his words, a frigid bitch suffering from asexuality," Beckett said. "But really, to tell you the truth he was…"

"Lacking?" Castle supplied. When she nodded he asked, "So before this you liked him?"

"I thought I did, I deluded myself a number of times into thinking that this guy was going to be much different than the last. That I would enjoy myself in the relationship fully, emotionally and physically, but it never really worked out to the point where I could continue," Beckett said, looking at her fiancé as she cupped his cheek with her left hand so he could feel the band of her ring.

"Alright, then let's break this down, because there's a lot we just talked about. You've never really had s- really, we had this discussion before, it's making love between us right," Castle said.

"You've become a sappy, sappy man," Beckett teased him. "But no, you're right, it better be that. But can that apply to when you're fucking me?"

"I think then it's more we're fucking each other, but yes, it does apply," Castle said. "So you've never had sex with other men as much as you and I are making love." She nodded, so he then said, "And you're afraid of that becoming too much for us and us stopping? I think your problem is you're not thinking of the fact that fifty percent of people _don't_ get divorced. Think of them love, look at Rebecca and David, they've been married for almost fifteen years now, they're still very much in love. I bet if we asked them, they'd say their sex life was pretty healthy."

"Have you talked to David about that?" Beckett asked.

"Not really, he just says he's happy in that regard, this was at a card game at his and Rebecca's before we got together," Castle said. "I got a little worried about that but when I asked him in private later he assured me they were still as in love as they'd been when they'd first met, he just didn't like to share about that part of their marriage."

Sighing, Beckett leaned against him as he wrapped his arm around her and said, "Alright, I'll try to ignore that, because it's making me feel like I'm Julia worrying about us getting sick."

"Best thing to do," Castle said simply. He then turned to her and pushing up on the bottom of her chin made her raise her head so he could kiss her, which he was able to do, deepening it as soon as she wrapped her arms around him tightly. Pulling her onto his lap, he slipped his tongue into her mouth and they were soon dueling, though it wasn't really to find who would end up the more dominant one, more to try to get the other to fight back so they could keep on going. When they parted to breathe eventually, he pressed his forehead to his fiancée's and asked, "Should we limit ourselves?"

"That would make things worse," Beckett said, not too surprised to see the relief on his face at her disagreeing with that. "Plus I don't think I would be able to."

Smirking, Castle said, "So I take it you enjoy it."

Giving him a look, Beckett slid off his lap to sit next to him, being as slow and deliberate as she could since she'd been able to feel his arousal, and told him, "You could say that. "

"So we're okay? With this part of our relationship, and we're not going to worry about falling out of love with one another, emotionally or sexually?" Castle asked his fiancée.

"You realize that I want to spend the rest of my life with you," Beckett said, feeling suddenly a little embarrassed saying that; even shy which was very unlike her. But she hadn't quite said those same words to anyone before, only hinting them to Castle, but it was true, and she had to tell him.

"And believe me when I say I want to do the same," he told her, taking her left hand as he glanced at the diamonds on the silver band.

"Than let me ask you something now that I know that," Beckett said seriously. "Are you enjoying it?"

"What I'm enjoying, is you love," Castle said as soberly as he could as he stared into her eyes.

Beckett's breath stuttered a little hearing that, and she took a moment to recover before leaning over to share a kiss with him. It was brief, but conveyed enough and she pulled back to say, "So am I, all of you," murmuring as she glanced down his body.

Gulping as Castle swore then his erection literally jumped as it pulsed at the way she looked at him, he said, "Should we…" but trailed off, unsure if she'd want to do that and not wanting to ask outright after their discussion; wanting her to initiate things that time.

Watching him, and seeing how tense he was holding himself, Beckett finally had to say; as she was going through the same thing herself; "Do you remember last night?"

"Yeah, it was nice; I won't say enjoyable though it was, I know you get annoyed when I get repetitive," Castle said.

"Before we did that," Beckett said, remembering their lovemaking the night before herself then and feeling her body immediately start to react to it.

"Oh… I think you said something about a rain check," Castle said. "You want to do that now? Great," he said enthusiastically before getting up and hurrying to his nightstand.

Beckett smiled and shook her head watching him, since his tablet was still on her nightstand. But soon he was back with her, and she said, "You're pretty eager."

"You are too," Castle said simply, since he knew she was teasing him. "You just hide it much better than me." Sitting behind her he held the tablet in front of her and went to where he'd been trying to get her to see the night before. "You can choose," he told her. "I'm sorry they're pictures," he said when he opened the sample pages and came to the first one, a naked man and woman in the first position of the _Kama Sutra_. "But I've found it impossible to find books that don't have photographs of real people. There was a place online that had wood artistic models in the positions; disturbing since they definitely don't have genitalia."

As he'd been speaking, Beckett was scrolling up on the pictures while she listened to him. "This'll do for now, though it's disturbing how these people look like they're either asleep or else they got caught in the middle of a sneeze." She felt Castle's laugh against the back of her shoulder, and smiled saying, "But, yeah, don't buy this book."

"I wasn't, don't worry, but we could use it for now?" Castle asked, ending on a question as he let go of her while she held the tablet. "Can I?" he asked then, holding her hair.

"Go ahead, and I guess so, but we're using it together because some of these…" Beckett said, shaking her head slightly. She hissed a little as Castle; pulling her hair from her ponytail holder; pulled some hair with it at the same time.

"Sorry," he murmured, kissing under her ear to her shiver. He glanced over her shoulder as she was still looking at the positions, and he couldn't take it anymore, tossing the holder aside on a shelf and wrapping his arms around her, pulling her back against him. "You looked amazing in this Kate," Castle mumbled into his fiancée's ear.

"I know, you were staring at me off and on all night," Beckett said, a slight smile on her face. She felt his hands slip under her _kameez_ as he said huskily to her, "I need to touch you love," and then stopped him. "Wait," she said as she stopped. "This one," she told him, turning and handing him the tablet.

A little disturbed at how she'd stopped him so abruptly, Castle took a moment longer than he normally would have to see what she'd chosen, and he tilted his head. "You're sure? I really thought you'd want to be on top. You tend to prefer these kinds of positions though. Any reason why?"

Knowing her cheeks were likely a little flushed, Beckett shrugged saying, "I prefer the stimulation that way."

"You can pleasure yourself when you're on top," Castle said.

"A lot of women do that with you?" Beckett asked.

"No, or they could have, I wasn't paying attention," Castle replied. "You should know," he said as he stood up, taking her with him as he held her hand tightly in his. "I forget about myself sometimes watching you."

"Is this going to turn into a modern _Pygmalion_?" Beckett asked, hesitating a little.

"You'd have to have been a statue," Castle said. "Or, I guess you'd have to be Nikki Heat herself, and since Rook has her, I'll say no, it's not."

"So I'm no longer your muse?" Beckett teased him as he set the tablet on her nightstand and came back to her.

"You are, but I didn't say it, you did," Castle said before he kissed her and hard as he clutched her against his body.

"Hard to do anything if you've got two broken legs," Beckett whispered when they finally broke apart, his lips swooping down to her neck as he started to pull at the _kameez_ to get it off her. She helped him to get herself naked from the waist up, and then started on the buttons of his shirt before it was open; pulling it out of his jeans before he crushed her lips and her body to his again.

Castle could feel his fiancée working to remove his shirt, and though he didn't want to let her go, he finally did, since he didn't want to delay anymore. He then broke off their kiss as his lungs were almost burning for air, and he hurriedly pushed the _salwar_ past her hips, being careful to take off everything that was still on her at the same time. He followed the silk down to her feet, and then let her step out of it to wait for him to stand back up. "So-" he started to say.

"I know you like to take your time, but Rick, you don't need to take things that slowly," Beckett said, grabbing his pants and pulling him towards her. She opened the fly rapidly, and watched him as she pushed the last of his clothing down.

"You don't want to look?" Castle asked her, his erection almost painful even out in the open air.

"I've seen it before," Beckett teased him. And though his pants were still on, she backed up until she reached the bed, lying down in the middle of it. She watched him race to undress, but then said, "Will you be able to do that?"

Seeing she was gesturing to the tablet, Castle didn't say anything until he was getting onto the bed with her. "I will, that's the good thing about having longer legs, I can spread them as wide as you need me too, and as much as I want to," he said.

"Shouldn't that be my line?" Beckett asked, unable to help smiling as he'd nodded to himself at what he'd said.

"Sure, but since we like to share with this, I'll say it too," Castle said before he kissed her to end that conversation. He lay on top of her, groaning as he could feel her legs spreading then to allow their hips to press together though he wasn't inside of her. He kept kissing her, their tongues passing back and forth into each other's mouths in a kind of dogged search for one another though they weren't very far apart, and when they stopped, he leaned down, whispering into his fiancée's ear.

"I…" Beckett started to say at his questioning her how she'd like him to pleasure her. She felt her cheeks heart up then, and she murmured something, keeping her voice deliberately low.

"You… did you just say…" Castle said as he realized what she'd said. "You're sure?" he asked in more than a little shock.

"If you don't-" Beckett started to say before he cut her off with a kiss.

"Okay, so, to tell you the truth, I don't think I can do that," Castle said when they'd managed to stop. "Grabbing your ass sure, slapping it once maybe, carefully, that I can do, but doing it as hard as I can…" He studied his fiancée then and asked, "Are you asking me to do that for my sake?"

"I thought you were holding back a desire for that," Beckett confessed. "But thank you for not wanting to, okay, then instead…" and she beckoned him down to her before she whispered something into his ear.

"That I can do," Castle said eagerly, not realizing his tone of voice. He didn't see his fiancée's smile either, as he was busy propping her up with pillows. "Good?" he asked when she was up.

"Go ahead," Beckett said, seeing him staring at her. "What?" she asked, reaching up with her arms.

"You really think I could get tired of this?" Castle commented, staring at her breasts then that were rising then with the position of her arms.

"I'll get older Castle, I won't always look like this," Beckett said, watching him as she said that.

"So will I, but I get the feeling you'll be looking this sexy even when I'm an old, old man," Castle said, leaning down. "I'm just hoping you want me… yes you do," he said as his fingers were fingering her folds, finding them slick to the touch. "Why love," he said, sliding his digits up to her clit, circling the already heavily swollen nub. "You are absolutely hot for me."

"Fuck, Rick," Beckett moaned deeply as even his brushing touch; which was what she'd asked him; was setting off an immediate reaction in her body. "I've been for a while now, just, just hurry. I want you inside of me. Fucking me."

"Me too," Castle said simply before he leaned over and kissed her deeply. He groaned as she grabbed onto the back of his head, and he allowed his fingers to go back to her entrance, running them over her twice before he slowly slipped them in her. When they'd parted, he went down to her breasts, nuzzling them both, before taking her right nipple between his lips, shuddering at how taut it was as he suckled at her fervently before he could stop himself.

Beckett tried to take the pleasure that he was giving her with his fingers and his mouth together, but she found herself unsatisfied though she was very satisfied, and soon begged him, "Enough, I just want you inside me, deeper."

Nodding, as he could understand her impatience, Castle leaned down and kissed her deeply before they parted, and he helped her get the pillows out from under her, retaining one to place under her hips. He moved to set the last pillow aside before going to his nightstand and then quickly hurrying back to his fiancée. Her legs wrapping around him under his arms once he was between them, he moved to enter her, breathing hard as he could feel her arousal more intensely than with his fingers. He closed his eyes for just a second to take everything that seemed to rush through him, and then paused for a second once he was fully within her. "I love you Kate," he told her, his voice tense and strained as he held himself back. "I want you just like this, always," he then added, remembering their conversation earlier.

"I-" Beckett started to say before her fiancé was starting to thrust against her, making her cry out slightly as that set off a literal explosion of pleasure inside her, and she moved quickly to meet him, as he was starting out rough already. "I love you Rick… just, don't stop," she said, not caring that at the end she was begging. She watched as he leaned over a little, able to do that with the way his legs were spread enough so they were on either side of her. When he reached up to cup her breasts, she closed her eyes tightly and said, "You didn't have to- oh!- you didn't have to do what the bo-o-ook said!" crying out as he flicked his thumbs over her nipples a few times. She breathed out hard as he pushed down against her as he thrust, hitting dead on against her clit every time. "You can't…" she moaned, wondering what it was about the position that was setting her off so easily. She only hoped that he was feeling the same as her, not wanting to finish without him with her.

Clenching his jaw tightly, Castle watched as his fiancée was literally writhing against him though she was moving in perfect sync with him. The sound of their hips striking became more and more audible as he sped up continuously, working his way to the point where he couldn't go any faster. He had his hands on her breasts still, not because the book had had that little instruction to do it, but because he saw that the position allowed him the opportunity. And since he knew that Beckett was as sensitive as she was when he did anything to her there, he took the chance. Also he enjoyed it greatly, just wishing that he could bend over and give some satisfaction to them both by taking them with his mouth. But he didn't really want to stop fucking her, so he moved slightly, trying for a moment to find her g-spot. But the position wasn't quite the best for that, so instead he focused on her. But even as he did, sliding his hands up and down her sides achingly slowly, he couldn't stop being affected by feeling her around him, heavily aroused and taking him in her repeatedly.

Breathing, panting hard, Beckett thrust up to him repeatedly, her eyes closed until he suddenly squeezed her breasts, not hard but firmly, making her look up at him. She bit her lower lip and then turned her head to the side to see what he would do. She was startled when he was suddenly picking her up, and she had to scramble a little to follow him as made her get on her knees. She wasn't too surprised when he kissed her, and hard, as she moved back and forth against him. "I knew you couldn't keep that position," she teased him; not caring that he had done that.

"I don't want the same one, I need to have more than just this," Castle told her, moving her the next three thrusts so she would know what he was talking about. "And I need this…" He lowered his head to her chest, taking her nipples eagerly, nipping at them at first before he could feel his fiancée clutching at the back of his head. He groaned as her pace on him began to pick up, and he moved to kiss her. "I love you," he whispered, his voice far deeper than it normally was. "I adore you my love."

Shivering as he tended to just call her love, Beckett kissed him then, deeply but shortly as she leaned back enough to tell him, "I love you too Rick, always." She wasn't surprised when he kissed her again, and she tried to keep moving as he was doing the same with her. She stroked the back of his head gently, feeling him shuddering at her touch, and she felt him pulling away. She allowed herself the joy of brushing her fingertips against his slightly swollen lower lip for a moment before he was kissing at her neck. But he seemed to freeze there, and then pulled back, something in his expression making her a little concerned.

Castle laid Beckett down on the bed, and withdrew from her as carefully as he could, though they were both groaning in protest at that. He ignored himself, and slid his lips down her body, going over her abdomen and then to the apex of her legs, where he flicked his tongue out as delicately as he could. He had to move his hands in a flash to her thighs as they nearly snapped around his head, but he didn't care, taking the swollen nub carefully with his mouth and tongue, making her writhe again above him. He had no idea what else he was doing to his fiancé besides pleasuring her, and he found his ear suddenly being pulled up, and hard, making him go with it.

"Don't waste this," was all that Beckett said before she was moving in a hurry to help him sink back inside of her. She breathed out in pleasure as he was soon there, and began to move, both of them getting back into the position they'd started out with, though without the pillow that time. It didn't matter, as neither of them really noted its absence, the pleasure still enough between them. She could feel her fiancé deep inside of her, going rapidly after a short amount of time working up to it, and she moved with him, feeling suddenly the rhythm of their bodies in the way their hips slammed into each other.

Watching his fiancée's expression, the pure joy on her face as he kept moving inside of her, there was a brief thought in Castle's mind; why she'd been so concerned that either of them would get tired of each other, even if they were together often. He finally couldn't take it anymore, and moved his legs. He lay above her, kissing her hard as they were starting to lose their rhythm together. He knew she had to be close, because the gratification that she was giving him so steadily was starting to drive him crazy as he wasn't finding any kind of release from the steady pleasure the friction between their bodies provided each other. He moved away from her, dragging his tongue away from her as slowly as he could, before nipping at the side of her neck and he sucked hard at the junction of her neck and shoulder. At the same time his hand was in between them, rubbing at her clit, getting smashed between them, but still rubbing, and continuing to do so until he felt her nails dig into his shoulders.

Crying out loudly, Beckett let herself writhe against her fiancé, not really caring that she was doing so without any attempt at control. There was nothing but ecstasy, running as pure fire through her veins, searching out every last space of her body, and she had to wonder if she was saying anything, or just crying out wordlessly. It was then she realized that Castle had joined her; when she never could figure out; but it was enough to set her off again, and that time she heard herself swearing as she begged him to fuck her; as she'd said that morning; and calling his name twice in complete abandonment. She almost thought someone had taken control of her voice, but she felt no embarrassment at what was said, just the tone. But the pleasure was too intense, and she almost expected them to work one another up again, but finally they slowed down, and she stopped first, collapsing back against the bed.

Breathing heavily as he leaned against his fiancée's moist skin, Castle gasped for air, recalling her crying out to him and what she'd said. He knew he'd done the same; cursed and told her he loved her at the same time in his joy, everything out of control from the satisfaction she gave him. "H-How," he stammered at first before stopping to take a few quick breaths, raising himself up to look into her eyes. "How the hell do you think I'd get enough of you? That's why I want you so many times!" he exclaimed as her cheeks flushed only slightly. "Because it's never enough! And the same with why I can't wait a night or two to be with you again."

"You're right, we should take advantage of this," Beckett said, flexing herself around him once to his heavy groan. "And never stop ourselves."

"Good… idea," Castle grunted as he began to move inside of her, placing her left ankle on top of his shoulder as she wrapped her other leg around him. "I won't stop."

"Neither can… can I," Beckett managed to say before she was lost to his thrusts, begging him to fuck her again.

With their minds set on each other, Castle and Beckett were a little shocked to find they were exhausted when they'd finished fucking one another a second time. But they knew they needed rest and they would have to focus on their case the next day. Under the bed sheet they were still naked, Castle begging his fiancée for that.

"We're close you know," Beckett said.

"I know," Castle said. Shaking his head as he stroked Beckett's hair he said, "I almost forgot about the election."

"Me too, that's actually been pretty nice," Beckett said. "I'm sorry I brought it up now."

"It's alright, I'm sure I would have remembered," Castle commented. He then grinned and said, "I wonder if it'll be a good idea for me to stop consulting the NYPD."

"Why?" Beckett asked, knowing he'd said that for a reason.

"Because I'd want to take you just like I did for a very long time, you wouldn't get any sleep, and you'd be pretty unhelpful," Castle said.

"You honestly think I'd forget work," Beckett said.

"No, not really," Castle replied with a slight smile. He held her as she pressed closer to his side, running his fingers through her hair gently as she sighed in response. "I think about Isabella you know, without a father," he said after a moment.

"I know, but, Carlotta might find someone, you never know," Beckett said. "And if that's making you think of Julia, you will be her father. You did notice that she was worried about me and then you."

"I was surprised," Castle told her. "I honestly expected her to worry more about her grandfather."

"We're her parents," Beckett said, exhaustion punching her it felt like.

"We are, get some sleep love," Castle said, watching her closely.

"Hmm, we usually talk longer," Beckett said.

"It was a rough day, we didn't help ourselves with our night," he commented.

"I wouldn't have changed it at all," Beckett murmured.

"Neither would I," Castle said sincerely. He leaned over as she raised her head, and kissed her deeply before they parted, only to kiss again, but quickly. Before she could lie back down, he kissed her hard, having her tangle her tongue around his for a brief moment before they slid them apart and then finally pulled apart. "Night Kate," he whispered since his forehead was pressed against hers.

"Night Rick," Beckett said in the same tone. "Hmm, thank you, for tonight."

Castle smiled slightly and kissed her again, slowly though it was sensuous. When they parted he kissed her forehead and felt her snuggling closer, her cheek to his shoulder. Holding her tightly, he waited until he thought she was asleep, and closed his eyes, nodding off quickly.

Though she had closed her eyes, Beckett had not yet nodded of herself when Castle did, making her smile as his hold around her was slightly loose, but his arms were still around her. She raised her head enough to press a kiss to his shoulder, and only then did she drift off, the warmth and slight pressure of her fiancé's embrace lulling her quicker than her fatigue, taking her into a deep sleep. Her satisfaction for the night never left her and she found it influencing her dreams she would remember when the next morning dawned.


	16. That Soul Betraying

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The title of this chapter is a lyric from the song Devil's Radio by George Harrison, from his album Cloud Nine.

As he awoke, Castle felt the bed move when Beckett next to him lay back with an audible plop, and he turned over, seeing her holding the sheet over her breasts as she was staring intently at her engagement ring. "Kate?" he asked, his voice still thick with sleep.

"Yeah?" Beckett asked, glancing at him, looking thoughtful for a moment before forcing the expression off her face.

"You okay?" Castle said, studying her.

"Sure," Beckett said, looking at the ceiling. She could feel Castle's doubtful gaze on her, and she glanced at him before saying, "Do you… still have dreams?"

"About what?" Castle asked, getting up on his side to look down at her.

"About me," Beckett said simply.

"I do, any reason… oh you had one about me I'm guessing," Castle said knowingly and smiling at her.

"Yeah, but…" Beckett said, looking embarrassed. "Have they felt real?"

"A lot of them, yes," Castle said.

"How much?" Beckett asked.

"What do you mean?" Castle replied.

"Have you ever… gotten off from them?" Beckett asked, trying not to falter.

"Did you?" Castle asked, reaching underneath the sheet. "You did, wow, okay. So I have before, but not that often, but it's not a problem if you think it is," he said as he studied her expression closely while he gently stroked her slick folds after feeling the evidence of her dream-induced orgasm.

"Stop, it's not," Beckett said, grabbing his hand to stop him. "I just am a little concerned…"

"About what?" Castle said as he sat up with her, staying up as she leaned back against her pillows.

"About myself," Beckett said.

Studying her then as she didn't seem all that worried, Castle then realized what she meant and why she was still concerned even after their conversations about the subject of their intimacy and said, "Let me ask you something." With her looking at him he asked, "Have you been like this before in past relationships?"  
"Do not get a bigger ego than you already do," Beckett said, pointing her finger in his face. "No."

"Great," Castle said, taking her hand and entwining their fingers together. "So I'm guessing you're trying to figure out why that is."

"Pretty much, I think that's what has me worried, never really been so needy before and I'm not used to being like this," Beckett said.

"Do you want to stop feeling that way?" Castle queried.

"What did we talk about last night?" Beckett said, looking at him with a raised eyebrow.

"Awesome," Castle said shortly before he leaned over and kissed her deeply on the lips. He was relieved when she responded to him; since he hadn't wanted to stop; and moved a little more to lie on top of her.

"Wait, wait," Beckett said. "We need-"

"Look at what time it is," Castle interrupted her.

Leaning over with him to look at the clock, Beckett was a little startled to see it was still a little less than an hour before they needed to get up. She turned back to her fiancé and said, "I guess I couldn't stop thinking about that dream," a smile spreading over her lips.

Startled, since that smile was more of a smirk, Castle tried not to gulp then, but managed to still as he said, "Want to tell me what it was about?"

"I don't know," Beckett said, not looking at him then as she sat up again. She smiled and then said, "Maybe you laid me down in the middle of the bed…"

"Like this?" Castle asked, doing so. When his fiancée nodded he then asked; not caring his excitement was tingeing his voice; "Was I rough, or gentle?"

"Gentle, through everything," Beckett commented, surprised to see that he looked even more eager than before at that. She then bit her lower lip and murmured, "You started by kissing me."

"Tell me everything now," Castle said, nearly lunging for her lips but managing to hold himself back just in time. "Tell me and I'll do everything, just let me know if I do anything wrong."

"Don't be a smart ass when I tell you though," Beckett said, feeling her cheeks slightly heat up at his begging. When he nodded she bit her lower lip again for a brief moment and then said, "You kissed me, my lips, by body, but mostly my breasts."

"Well, they're… I enjoy them?" Castle said, ending in a hesitant question. "I don't want to insult you, but I swear I enjoy taking them. Please tell me you do too because I'd like to continue."

Beckett didn't reply to that; merely smirked; and said, "But eventually you went further down."

"How far?" Castle asked. He shuddered when she took his hand and let him rub against her folds again. "Kate…" he said, watching her reacting to that immediately by closing her eyes tightly and moving in time with him. He kissed her gently and then moved his hand away as she looked at him, and then said, "I can continue, or let you finish telling me. I just want to let you see how your dream would be if you were conscious."

"You kissed me all over, my thighs, my clit," Beckett continued, watching him. She wasn't surprised at his slight shudder at her description, and she then said, "But I was begging you to move, to take me, make love to me."

"How did I take you?" Castle asked seriously.

"Like we are now. And you kissed me while we were moving together…" Beckett started to say before the motions began. "Rick…" she gasped out slightly in pleasure.

"Like this?" Castle asked as they were moving together, their hips pressed close though he wasn't inside of her.

"Yes, but you were inside me, I could feel you…" Beckett said, frowning at that.

"Soon," Castle promised her. "Did I move? Anything special?"

"No, you kept me on my back, pretty much at your mercy," Beckett said as they forced themselves to stop moving. "But you made sure it was all about me. And I actually ended up doing something I've never done before."

"Which was what?" Castle asked when she didn't continue.

"Uh-uh, you'll find out," Beckett said. "But everything was enough to make me wake up thinking you'd made me orgasm and hard. Had to wake up before I realized you were nowhere near enough for that." She pushed on the sheet, and once Castle had pulled it down enough said, "Here."

"Wait," he said quickly before detouring for a second. He moved back to her and kissed her deeply, sinking into her body slowly, deliberately as she moaned and cried out into his mouth. When he'd stopped, their hips once again pressed together, he pulled back and murmured, "No more fearing this love, take what you want."

"I am right this second," Beckett said simply, her lips brushing against his. "Take me Rick."

Breathing out once, Castle paused and said, "Wasn't I supposed to-"

"It doesn't matter," Beckett interrupted him. "Just-" she began before she was cut off by her own moan as he began to thrust.

Though he was a little annoyed at himself for forgetting the very beginning of her dream, Castle soon realized why it was that his fiancée hadn't cared about that. She was aroused, extremely so, and he had to wonder if it was from describing how things had gone in that dream. He had a sudden urge to do better than his dream self, feeling slightly ridiculous at the thought. Instead he moved down to her lips, kissing her deeply as she responded, her legs suddenly wrapping around his. He groaned hard when he sank back into her after that, feeling himself getting deep inside of her. He broke off the kiss, seeing the expression of pure pleasure on her face, and he descended to her neck, kissing wildly at it before he moved to press his forehead against hers. All that time he'd been going at a slower, unhurried pace, and he could feel her moving along with him, their hips nearly rolling together, skin sliding against skin, and he somehow knew that she was enjoying him much better than him in her dream. The thought made him move to kiss her, but she beat him to it, their lips crushing each other before she slipped her tongue past his lips.

Stroking the back of his head, Beckett tried to move her hips back down into the bed when she thrust away from him, and used the extra space to push herself up a little harder than before. There was a kind of erotic satisfaction for her in the smack of their skin hitting, and she shuddered as he broke off what must have been their fifth or sixth kiss since they'd started. She cupped his face in her hands, stroking his cheeks as he closed his eyes tightly in response. When she whispered his name, she bit her lower lip; tasting him there still; as his eyes flew open and their gazes met before he was lowering himself to her lips. They kissed, but sensuously, slowly, before he pressed harder against her, and they were suddenly dueling a little wildly against one another, hands everywhere they could touch.

When they broke off their second kiss that had followed the first in much the same manner, Castle moved down her body, going to her breasts. He watched her for a moment, just keeping his eye on the way her chest rose and fell with her heavy breath. He couldn't take it for much longer, and finally he gave up, swooping down to take her right nipple as she cried out and grabbed at him hard. He was still taking her, his rhythm imbedded in him by then so he could let his body take over easily. It was then she moved, and he guessed; in the shock of her hand around the base of his erection; that that action was what she'd been talking about doing in her dream. She'd never done it before, and he hissed heavily in feeling her squeeze once, carefully.

"I need to w-wait," Beckett stammered slightly as he moved a little harder when she'd let him go. He slowed down after only doing that twice, and at his apology he murmured into her shoulder she kissed his temple before he was taking her lips. As they kissed, she was so distracted she almost didn't feel his hand reaching in between them, but when his fingers managed to get to her clit; that she did feel. She was so close to the edge that it only took a few passes of his fingers, and she was arching her back a little hard against him, nearly smashing his hand in between them if he hadn't moved it in time. She had no idea of that, only of the throbbing of her sex around him, the haze of her pleasure broken when she felt him joining her in her orgasm shortly after that. Everything became focused to the two of them, and she tried to remember something, anything else that didn't have to do with them or her body burning up in her ecstasy, but it was impossible, and she let it take over, feeling it in her fiancé as he moved with her until they stopped abruptly, at almost the same time, slumping down together to the bed. "I really need to lighten, lighten up," she commented, trying to catch her breath and stammering slightly as she stroked his hair gently.

"No, I think you did," Castle murmured before he pulled back. "Not exactly like your dream, but pretty close."

Beckett couldn't reply to that, as she was suddenly pulled up by him onto her knees; straddling him; as he sat up. "Close, and yes, better than my dream. And yes, it was more intense than when I woke up." She pulled back to see his expression and pushed at his shoulder saying, "Don't get full of yourself."

"Hard not to," Castle said, kissing her gently. He wasn't surprised when she quickly responded to him, their tongues meeting before the alarm on his nightstand started to ring. But neither of them moved to end that kiss until they had to, and he allowed her to get off of him as he slid off the bed reluctantly to get ready.

Since the two were able to get dressed so quickly; for some reason thinking their lovemaking had made them late; Beckett was startled when she looked at her watch after putting her engagement ring away in the box in her nightstand. "Castle, we have about twenty minutes," she said when he came out of the bathroom.

"We, you're right," he said, trying to button his cuff but having some difficulty. "Are you ready?" he asked.

"Yes, here," Beckett said, taking his wrist and easily buttoning the deep blue fabric. "And you were going into the Precinct like this?" she asked, finishing buttoning his shirt for him.

"I swear I forgot," Castle said defensively. "Though that would explain why I thought it was kind of drafty in here."

"Castle," Beckett said warningly as he pulled her close to him when she'd finished, grabbing her wrists.

"Please?" Castle begged her.

Breathing out, Beckett nodded, and was able to wrap her arms around his neck before he leaned down to kiss her, his hands holding onto the small of her back. She slid her hands up the back of his neck to his hair as he held her close, and she sighed when they pulled away from one another a little bit later. His forehead pressed against hers as they felt each other's breath against their lips and she whispered, "Better you get this out of your system."

"Me? It's both of us, you were enjoying that as much as I was," Castle said, pretending to be irritated at her tone.

Merely smiling, Beckett gave him a quick peck on the lips and then left the room saying, "We can wake her up now, we-" stopping abruptly as she opened the door and saw Julia standing there, reaching up to knock.

"I guess we don't need to," Castle said to his fiancée. "Morning sweetheart, how come you're up?" he asked as Beckett picked her up and they kissed her at the same time.

"I woke up," Julia said simply, giggling a little. "But I don't have camp right?"

"No, you're done until the seventh of next month," Beckett said, carrying her out to the kitchen.

"Good, I wanted to ask Mommy, Castle," Julia said as her mother set her down on one of the chairs at the island. "Is Isabella kay?"

"She is," Beckett replied as she checked her phone. "Now, what do you want for breakfast?"

Alexis; who had slept through Julia leaving the bed; woke up and headed downstairs after dressing to see that the little girl was sitting on the counter next to her dad, watching him make an omelet. "Morning, I see she beat me to breakfast," she commented to them.

"She did, surprised us," Castle said, smiling as he watched Julia holding out her arms and opening and closing her hands until her sister came over, picking her up.

"Can you get her dressed?" Beckett asked, finishing getting the coffee ready to brew.

"Do you want me to?" Alexis asked Julia.

"Yes please, can I wear my other _kameez_?" the little girl asked eagerly.

"She can," Beckett said quickly when Alexis looked over at her questioningly. She was about to say something to Castle, when his phone rang next to the stove. "It's Naomi," she said, seeing the number first.

Sharing a look with his fiancée, Castle answered quickly, and said, "Oh, they did? Okay, well, I'll have to let her know and I'm sure she'll look around. Yeah, thanks so much Naomi, bye."

When he'd hung up, Beckett quickly said, "They sold it?"

"They sold it," Castle said with a nod.

"They sold the townhouse?" Martha said, getting their attention as she came down the stairs.

"Yeah, someone bought it yesterday, at their asking price, so there wasn't any way we could have gotten it if we had ended up wanting it," Castle said.

"But it's not that big of a loss," Beckett pointed out. "We never saw it or fell in love with it, so we'll keep looking."

"What happened?" Alexis asked as she and Julia came down the stairs then.

"They sold the townhouse your father and Kate were going to look at Saturday," Martha said as Alexis went to grab their place mats for the table.

"Too bad, but maybe this gives you the chance for a much better home," Alexis said.

"Interesting way to look at it," Castle commented.

"I think we should live at the beach," Julia said firmly.

"We told you sweetie," Beckett said, shaking her head. "It's too far for us to go into work."  
"But it's perfect there," Julia sighed as she put down the napkins and forks next to the plates Alexis was setting down. "And perfect for a doggie too."

"That would explain why she wants to live there," Alexis said with a smile.

"I think she likes the beach though," Castle said, taking two plates to the set on the table. "But we'll go there in the summers, Memorial Day weekend, Christmas and for weekends too. So we'll head out there still Julia, don't worry."

Sitting down together to eat at the table, Beckett watched her daughter as she pushed some pieces of her omelet around and said, "I thought you liked it in the city sweetie."

"I do," Julia said. "I wish we had a big house though."

"I think we spoiled her with the beach house," Martha said jokingly.

"A little," Castle commented. "Julia," he said then to get her attention. "The beach house I think you can say is your second home."  
"I can?" the little girl asked, looking up at him.

"You can, because that's going to be the second permanent address you'll have besides wherever we move to after your mom and I are married," Castle said, taking her fork and getting a piece of the omelet she'd moved around on it. "And we will try and go as often as possible, I promise."

"And we'll see about a dog sweetie," Beckett said. She had to laugh suddenly as Julia looked at her in complete consternation, and she covered her mouth quickly. "Sorry, I'm serious, but we need to see. Because there's a lot to having a dog and we would have to figure out how we'll take care of it. But we'll consider getting one, is that okay?"

"You're lucky," Alexis said as Julia looked a little confused. "Dad wouldn't even bother thinking of getting a dog when I was younger."

"Kay, I hope you think it's good to get a doggie, 'cause it is," Julia said firmly.

"What kind would you get?" Martha asked in amusement.

"Too soon to say," Castle commented as they went back to their meal. "But I'd like a bigger breed…"

"As you said Castle, way too soon to say," Beckett said simply. She smiled when he made a face and she squeezed his hand before she asked Alexis when she was taking Julia to the museum.

At the end of the meal, Julia was helping Alexis carrying everything to Castle who was at the sink asking her, "Can I wear this to the museum?"

"Sure," Alexis said before she paused in putting two plates down. "Uh, Beckett?"

"It's fine," she called, coming out from Castle's room. "Just be careful not to get it dirty at lunch."

"Do you need to go?" Julia asked, running to her.

"I'm afraid so sweetie," Beckett said, looking at her watch. "I need to go now," she said in surprise when she caught sight of the time. "And I have to hurry before I'm late. Okay, have fun with Alexis-"

"And me, I'll join them," Martha interrupted as her son's fiancée picked Julia up.

"And with Martha," Beckett said with a smile. "I love you so much sweetie, have a great day okay?"

"Yeah, I'll miss you though Mommy," Julia said.

"Only tomorrow and then your mom's off for a week," Castle reminded her, going over to them and getting his fiancée's work bag.

"That's right," Beckett said, smiling at Julia's delight in the reminder. She laughed softly when their daughter hugged her, and she kissed her temple saying, "I'll see you tonight okay, as soon as I can get off work."

"I love you Mommy, and be careful," Julia said before they shared a kiss.

"I will, bye sweetie," Beckett said, setting her down. She went to her fiancé then and kissed him briefly before he was holding her in place, kissing her a little deeper for just a few seconds longer. "I'll see you soon?" she asked.

"I'll stop for coffee," Castle said. At Beckett's nod they kissed again, and then parted before her phone rang.

"It's my dad," Beckett said in surprise. "Dad?" she answered. "Is everything… oh, sure, that would be fine. Hold on." Covering the earpiece she said to the others, "He doesn't have to go into work tomorrow since he's going to finish the paperwork from his last case today, he wants Julia to spend the night."

"Can I?" the little girl asked eagerly.

"You can, I'll take you once I pick you up here," Beckett said. Her father spoke then, and she listened to him before correcting herself, telling Julia, "He'll pick you up once he's done with work. Okay, I need to go Dad, I'm running late. Right, I love you too, bye." She took her bag from Castle, kissing him one last time before going to Julia and sharing another kiss with her. "Bye Martha, Alexis, have a great time with her," she called before she left, rushing down the hall to their goodbyes. She got on the first elevator that reached her and called Esposito to see where they were with their case as the doors shut in front of her while her phone went straight to his voicemail. And it was then she knew that Haupt was in custody, her gaze going up to the numbers, willing the elevator to hurry down to the lobby.

* * *

"Hey," Castle said, opening the door to observation. "I thought Ryan would be in here."

"He'd prefer to play it safe," Beckett commented.

"I think Gates scares him, even after two years of her being here," Castle said, handing her one of the cups of coffee he'd brought in with him.

"She does. Thanks," Beckett said as he turned to look inside Interrogation. "Meet Keith Haupt, who is currently on summer break from his duties with Representative Boyer."

"And that's all he's told Esposito," Castle asked.

"For now," Beckett said simply as she saw the detective was sliding some papers across the table to the man.

"Yeah, that's the money I got, I told Kev last night about it," Haupt said.

"And can you explain where exactly you got a hold of this money," Esposito said. "Money for simply distracting some people; as you said you were told to do; at a bar."

"A guy came in, and he said his unofficial boss-" Haupt began.

"Unofficial?" Esposito asked.

"That's what he called the person, he kept going back and forth using him and her, I wasn't sure. But he just said he needed to talk to someone, and the distraction would help," Haupt explained.

"Can you describe this guy?" Esposito asked.

"Yeah, he was tall, about my height. Blonde hair, brown eyes, young, I think about… thirty if that," Haupt said, thinking as he spoke.

"And did he give you his name?" Esposito said.

"He just said he was Fred Laurent," Haupt said with a shrug. "I have no clue if that's his real name though."

"Okay," Beckett said, motioning to Castle as she went to the door. "We can search for this guy."

"What if that's not his real name though?" Castle pointed out as he followed her.

"We'll take the chance," Beckett said. "And if that's a fake name, we'll go by where they were meeting. Let's just hope he's local."

Watching, Castle wasn't too surprised when she searched the name, and got no hits. He started to speak but then hesitated before saying, "I'm wondering," he commented, getting her attention. "About that last name?"

"Let me see," Beckett said. She searched the name and was surprised to get two hits. Bring up the pictures she shook her head telling him, "It can't be either one. This Albert Laurent is sixty years old, and the other Laurent is a woman, Caroline, fifty-nine years old."

"What about sons?" Castle asked.

Beckett paused and then turned back to the screen saying, "Mr. Laurent doesn't have kids, and Caroline Laurent… She has two sons, one is William Hague and the other is…"

"That's him, Frederick Hague," Castle said.

"Ryan!" Beckett called, getting up from her chair as Castle followed her over to the elevator.

"Hey," Esposito said, coming out of Interrogation to see his partners heading to the elevator.

"We found him," Ryan said, Beckett having just told him breathlessly.

"LT, get him into holding, we'll have to get his alibi when we come back," Esposito said, making it into the car a second before the doors closed.

* * *

Walking down the hallway, Beckett and Castle were alone, as Ryan and Esposito were in the lobby talking to the landlord about their suspect. She had them do that, wanting to see if the woman could remember Hague being in DC in the past year and also to find out anything else about him. Getting to the door of 5F, she turned to Castle and said, "He's not our killer."

"Yeah, but still, should be careful," he commented.

"I'm armed remember," Beckett said, knocking on the door. She refrained from identifying herself, wanting the man to answer the door and not run since his apartment had a fire escape outside. "Mr. Hague?" she called finally when there was no sound of anyone walking inside after she knocked a second time.

"Excuse me?" a voice said from the apartment down the hall.

"Do you know the man who lives here?" Beckett asked the young man. "Frederick Hague?"

"Yeah, Freddy's not there, I saw him leave yesterday and he never came back," the man replied.

"Did he mention where he was going?" Castle asked.

When the man shrugged, Beckett showed him her badge and said, "Are you covering for him? Because that would be obstruction."

"No, seriously, I saw him go, a bag in his hand," the man said nervously. "An overnight bag and he said he'd come back next week. Didn't say where he was going though."

"Beckett," Castle suddenly said, his voice clipped and rushed.

Turning, she went back to him, seeing he nearly had his face smashed against the door, sniffing at the seam between it and the molding around the doorway. "What are you doing?" she asked, knowing he wasn't fooling around by his tone of voice, but wondering what he was trying to accomplish doing that.

"I smell gas," Castle said.

"Ryan, Espo, get up here," Beckett said in her walkie-talkie, realizing almost immediately what had happened. She motioned Castle out of the way and kicked down the door, but kept her gun in her holster. She almost wasn't able to get inside, as there was a large pile of towels along the bottom of the door, and all around the door there was plaster that broke off as she pushed the door into the apartment and stepped inside. "Damn it," she swore when the first thing she saw, staggering back from the smell of gas, was their blonde suspect on his knees, head stuck inside the oven in the kitchen.

"Let me," Castle said, holding up his handkerchief to his face before he went inside.

"Use-" Beckett began, her voice muffled by her sleeve across her mouth. But he was using his jacket sleeve to turn off the oven, so she stopped herself and then said, "Get back, we need to call the landlord and see if there's any way to open the windows. And notify the fire department."

* * *

"We've got the all clear," Ryan said, walking down the hall to Beckett and Castle. "But they're advising the masks for now."

"Of course," Beckett said, putting the one she'd kept around her neck up over her mouth and nose. "Did Espo get anything else from the landlord?"

"Not really, just that his rent was paid about three months in advance a month ago," Ryan told them, voice muffled by his mask.

"So something happened recently to make him commit suicide," Castle said as a CSU team was going into the apartment ahead of them. "If he did commit suicide."

"We'll have to take a look at his note," Beckett said.

"What if he did?" Castle then asked. "And this has nothing to do with whoever the father is?"

"Then we hope he mentions why he drugged Carlotta for his boss," Beckett said simply.

"Detectives," a CSU team member said then, handing Ryan a piece of paper he'd slipped into an evidence bag.

"What does it say?" Beckett asked, she and Castle crowding close to try and read it.

"Here," Ryan said, giving the suicide note to her.

" _I'm sorry Mom, Will, but I can't be a party to what I did anymore_ ," Beckett read. " _That little girl shouldn't be alive, but she shouldn't be killed, and I won't be the one to do it when it was me that let all this happen. He forced me to, and now I have to deal with the consequences of his actions._ And then it just says he loves them."

"Nothing about his boss?" Castle asked, disappointment in his tone.

"Nothing," Beckett said simply. "Alright, let's search, see what we find." She went to the kitchen table and saw what she assumed was the man's cell phone, picking it up when she heard a stretcher. "Hey Lanie," she said.

"Hey, anything?" the doctor asked.

Shaking her head once as she knew Lanie meant the investigation into herself, Beckett said, "Is this clear cut?"

"He's showing signs of asphyxia," Lanie replied, nodding as she looked at the body once her co-workers had Hague in the body bag.

"Signs of a struggle?" Ryan asked.

"Not that I can see…" Lanie trailed off as she looked at the man's hands and wrists. "But I'll look him over before the procedure; should I get anything I'll let you know."

"Let us know the time of death," Beckett said, turning on the cell phone. With Castle looking over her shoulder, she went through the calendar app, but it looked like Hague had never used it. Then looking through the gallery of pictures, she paused on a locked folder, frowning.

"What is it?" Ryan asked, with Lanie to hear the time of death.

"No, it's just there's a picture here… this woman in it," Beckett said, looking at Castle. "Do you…"

"Yeah, she looks incredibly familiar, but I can't put my finger on why," he replied, looking frustrated. "And my memory is always really good. No, I can't remember."

"Neither can I," Beckett said. "But maybe where they are will help," she said, pointing to the background of the selfie. "It says benefit here, and has this design," she said, looking at the text and symbol. "We might be able to ID it with that."

"Okay, I'll set time of death at about twelve to four in the afternoon, yesterday," Lanie told them.

"That'll match the time his friend down the hall said he last saw him," Castle pointed out. "He must have come back up the fire escape and set everything up before killing himself; good thing he left the window open slightly when he left."

"It does," Beckett said. "Okay, Ryan, look at his office down the hall there. See if you can find anything in his paperwork that might clue us in on this unofficial boss."

"Why are you interested in that woman?" Lanie asked as she was writing something on her clipboard.

"Because that selfie was all by itself in a folder that was locked," Castle commented. "She was able to open it," he said, nodding to his fiancée. "Because his password was his mother's last name."

"I'll take care of the office, call you if-" Ryan started to say.

Beckett's phone rang and after handing Hague's note to Castle, she answered it hurriedly when she saw it was the hotel in DC. "Beckett," she said. "You were able to get it? Great, thank you and tell the FBI agent if we have a clue as to who… oh you found the group? Have they been interviewed? Okay, thank you again." Hanging up her phone, she took Hague's phone that Castle had put in an evidence bag handed to him by CSU and said, "They found the footage and it's at the station. They also found the hackers who got into the system, they're interviewing them now and will let me know what they say once they're finished interrogating them."

"I'll call you if I get anything," Ryan called as Beckett left, Castle rushing after her when she walked out the door without him.

"I have to wonder who he is, and what that woman has to do with it," he commented to his fiancée as they walked down the hall to the elevator. "I still wish I could remember her, it's right on the tip of my tongue and it's annoying me."

"Me too," Beckett said. Esposito was coming out of the apartment of Hague's friend, and she said, "We've got the security footage, and a picture of a woman, so we're heading back to the Precinct to see who the father is."

"The guy says he had no idea who Hague worked for," Esposito said, jerking his thumb back at the closed door of apartment 5B. "But he said the guy was secretive about that, didn't want anyone to know though he said the pay was pretty good."

"We'll have to look at his financials," Beckett commented. "For now, help Ryan out; see if you can any clues at all about who this mystery boss was, since he's obviously the father."

"Oh, uh, Beckett, the boss wasn't a man," Esposito replied. When she and Castle turned around abruptly the few steps they'd taken down the hall he said, "Racine's roommate who was also friends with Hague, Lenny Hamish, said it was a woman."

Turning, Beckett said, "What if the man was the woman's husband-"

"And he forced Hague to help him drug Carlotta to sleep with her," Castle continued. "And he threatened to go to the police after finding out the husband is trying to find and kill Carlotta and the baby-"

"But the husband threatened Hague with jail as an accessory to sexual assault, or even threatening to accuse him of the rape-" Beckett said as they got into an elevator.

"And Hague killed himself," Castle finished.

"I need to see if Carlotta is alright," Beckett said hurriedly. She dialed the woman's number and put it on speaker as the woman answered.

"Detective Beckett, is everything alright?" Carlotta said.

"We're just calling to check on you, is Officer Quinton there with you in the room?" Beckett asked.

"She's here, and Officer Nogales is outside the room. Isabella and I are fine. Is there anything new about the father?" Carlotta said, asking the last question hesitantly.

"I'm afraid not, but I just wanted to make sure things were alright with the change of shift," Beckett said, grimacing since it'd been two hours since that point. "I'll call again when Officers Hastings and Rizzio are there."

"Thanks Detective," Carlotta said meaningfully. "I'll call if there's any need to."

Hanging up the phone as she and her fiancé stepped out into the lobby, Beckett said, "I don't know if I want to tell her the father could be a member of Congress." She then realized something, and searched the name of Representative Boyer's wife; though Ryan had cleared the man almost fully as a suspect, just his whereabouts the night of the rape had to be discovered. She breathed out then, and said, "This is Antoinette Boyer," showing the picture on her phone to Castle.

"Not her," he said as they stopped next to her car. "But we have more evidence now. We'll find out who he is."

With a slight nod, Beckett got into the car with him, and drove to the Precinct, navigating the heavier traffic around Central Park before she had reached the station parking. At her desk she called to Officer Thomas to get her the financials for Hague, and she and Castle went to the TV, getting the security footage started.

"Okay, so there's Hague," Castle commented as they saw the man appear. "He's definitely looking into the room; the layout must have had the bed close enough for him to see Carlotta was unconcious."

"Or she didn't make it to the bed and was on the floor," Beckett said before she suddenly sneezed, bowing her head a little.

"Bless you," Castle said, glancing at her. When his head turned back to the TV as she murmured a thank you, he stood up straight and said in shock, "Kate."

Pausing the footage out of some instinct that she would never be able to account for, Beckett followed his gaze and her mouth opened to speak, but she was frozen, the blow from the realization of who the father was; the killer of their two vics and the man who had led Hague to commit suicide; left her mute.

On the screen; his hand clasping Hague's shoulder; was Senator Bracken.

* * *

Standing at the conference room windows, Beckett squeezed her eyes shut tightly, trying to take everything in. Her mother's killer, Sheryl Fuller's killer, Gareth Charlton's killer, Carlotta's assaulter and Isabella's father. All one man, the man she had been searching for ever since her mother's death fifteen years ago. The man who had ordered her killed, who had tried to explain away death as nothing more than a pebble of a nuisance on the road to his rise to power. She opened her eyes, and could feel his presence behind her, making her straighten up and turn to him. "We can't let him get away with this," she whispered as Castle walked over to her. "I can't let him kill his own child, the mother of his child… The mother who he raped."

Not caring about the risk, Castle reached out to her and took her hand, squeezing it tightly. "You know there's going to be a risk," his voice quiet.

"I can't let him get away with this Rick," Beckett said, turning to face him square on. "He kills them, then what stops him from raping another woman, getting her pregnant and killing their child? Or children? If she has twins? If anything I cannot let him think he could murder a child in cold blood because they're an inconvenience to him. To what he's trying to become," she said, her voice growing more and more irate as she spoke of those hypothetical children; the words burning her throat as she said them.

"Maybe it's not him," Castle said slowly. "What if it's whoever's working with him, helping him? He's got powerful friends; it could be them trying to cover this up."

"It's him," Beckett said. "And if I know him, he's working alone. He pushed Hague to kill himself-"

"How… Lanie called?" Castle started to ask.

"Yes, it was a suicide, Ryan called, they have fingerprints, but they all match each other; they're Hague's," Beckett said. "So it's Bracken. And I'm going to pull a shift tonight at the hotel, because he knows what we're doing, that we're looking into this investigation. He's going to try and get to her tonight."

"Why tonight?" Castle asked.

"Do you know Grover Sutcliff?" Beckett asked instead of answering.

"Yeah, the guy who's hinting at a run for President because of his first name," Castle said.

"Do you know who his friend is in Congress? His 'best friend and political brother'?" Beckett asked bitterly.

"He's announcing his run for President tomorrow," Castle said, knowing then what she was talking about.

"And his VP will be Bracken, one step away from the Presidency, Castle," Beckett said, starting to pace back and forth. "And considering the resources, we might all be waking up one morning to find the country under the control of President Bracken."

"He needs to clean up house and this is the biggest scandal that could drag him down," Castle said, looking at the murder board that she had moved inside the room. He saw the suspect section empty and then looked at his fiancée saying, "What could kill him politically."

"A woman and a baby," Beckett said. "I need to go and-"

"Wait, you have to stop and think about this Kate," Castle said, grabbing her arm as she started to walk past him. "You just reminded me of his resources. He knows you're investigating this case, and you are a threat to him."

"I have some protection," Beckett said.

Castle was going to protest that her threat of releasing the destroyed file was probably not going to be even a remote problem for the Senator, when LT came to the door of the room.

"Beckett?" the officer asked as the two stepped apart from each other. "This just got delivered for you."

Taking the envelope, Beckett nodded her thanks, not seeing the officer look at them for a moment before leaving. She opened it, taking out the letter inside and letting her gaze go down to the bottom of it. "It's from Hague," she said, dropping everything to the table. She was going to run to grab some gloves, when Castle did so instead. Once she had a pair on, she read the letter out loud to him.

" _Detective Beckett, I've been to the crime scene at the Indian restaurant, and found out your name. I needed to; because there's a lot you should know. About ten months ago, near the end of August I was at the Washington Mall Hotel, to do something for money; a large amount of money that was going to get my mother out of crippling debt and be able to move to a better home with my brother, who has special needs and whom she cares for. Senator William Bracken is the husband of the woman I have been working for; unofficially; as her secretary. It was a trial period, to see if she would hire me. But her husband threatened to reveal I had taken pictures of her sister; lewd pictures; and keep me from the job if I didn't go along with his plans_ ," Beckett read.

"Son of a bitch," Castle muttered.

" _But when I still hesitated, he offered the four hundred grand I needed for my mother, and I had no choice but to agree; they were going to go homeless if I didn't help in some way_ ," Beckett continued. " _Bracken had seen the woman; I don't know her name, I never found out; at his home as his wife had spoken to her for a job decorating her office in their New York home. He and his wife have also been having problems, so much so they're sleeping in separate rooms, and he saw this woman as a means to get back at his wife, and have sex again even if his partner didn't want it as he told me. He arranged everything; so well I was almost going to bow out of it, but he held the threat of my mom and brother begging for money on the streets over my head, and I did what he ordered me to do._

" _I was never proud of what I did, or of the fact that he bragged to me as we left about how she had been, and that he offered to set things up again for me to try her out too_ -" Beckett cut herself off, feeling sick at that and she handed the letter to Castle.

Taking her hand as he ignored the risk of it, he squeezed it once and then took over, forcing his nausea to recede as he read, " _I refused, and I tried to find her after that, but I had to return to my DC home at the time; since the Brackens were there during that session of Congress. I had no idea the woman had a baby, until I heard about the murder of the nurse. Bracken brought me to him, and he ordered me not to say a word if any detective found me. But I slipped up, told him I had to tell someone, but he threatened to kill my mother and brother, and I knew he could do it after the murder of the guy at the Indian restaurant._

" _I'm taking the coward's way out, but it's the only way I know that I can save Mom and Will, and I hope you'll at least take what I said as evidence and stop Bracken before he becomes a Vice Presidential candidate. But you have to save the woman and her baby; whoever they are. He's going to find them and keep them hidden before he gets his contacts to kill them like he did to that nurse and the man; or just kills them himself, he could even do that. There's nowhere you can run to in the city, he'll find them because he is more focused on the next election than anything else. And if anything gets in his way, I've seen the look on his face; he'll kill to reach the White House, even if he has to climb over the bodies of those he's murdered to do so_ ," Castle finished, sharing a look with his fiancé.

"He's going to kill Carlotta and Isabella," Beckett said simply, staring at him, daring him to say it wasn't going to be Bracken who would set it up.

"And tonight," Castle said in agreement before he handed the letter to his fiancée, and they rushed out of the room, heading for the break room as Ryan and Esposito walked into the bullpen, watching them for a split second before following them inside the room.


	17. Crying As We Part

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The title of this chapter is a lyric from the song Stuck Inside a Cloud by George Harrison, from his album Brainwashed, as are the lyrics below.

_Talking to myself  
_ _Now crying as we part  
_ _Knowing as you leave me  
_ _I also lose my heart…_

"That's Senator Bracken alright," Gates said, watching the man in the security footage. "And he stays in that room until what time?"

"Until about five thirty," Beckett said. "Doctor Parrish explained you can rape someone without showing any damage, and you can also do that to someone who's unconcious."

Frowning, the captain then said, "And you're sure this man was working for his wife around this time?"

"Yes sir," Ryan said. "I looked into Mrs. Bracken, and she is the woman who is in this picture that Hague took with her at the Education Rising Benefit in October of last year, in DC."

"But you're thinking the senator would go so far as to rape Ms. Spencer and then try and kill everyone associated with her and the baby," Gates said, looking at Beckett then.

"I was able to call a contact of mine in DC while they were gathering the evidence," Castle said, making the captain look at him. "And asked him about Sutcliff and Bracken, and he says that Sutcliff will all but announce that Bracken will be his running mate in 2016. Even if he doesn't win the primaries."

"But he's the favorite in all the polls for his party," Beckett pointed out.

"And what is it you want to do?" Gates asked her.

"I'm afraid that's going to need to be decided by Ryan and Esposito, sir," Beckett said simply.

"We'd like to build the evidence; what we have right now," Esposito said quickly; since the four of them had already talked about that before they'd gotten enough of what they had to convince the captain at her request. "Because we know that it will not be easy to get the DA to charge a senator. But Ryan and I can begin that process."

"And there's nothing to suggest it's someone else? Perhaps from Bracken's circle?" Gates inquired.

"No sir, we traced the account that paid Hague the four hundred thousand this past January," Ryan said. "And after jumping through a few banks, the account is from that same charity that Mrs. Bracken founded."

"Was Mr. Haupt able to ID Bracken at all?" Gates then asked, holding up her hand to have him pause in what he was going to say next.

"He wasn't, but he recognized Mrs. Bracken," Castle said.

"He had gone to a benefit for that charity, he was a donor since his sister runs it for the board here in the city's office," Beckett said. "Which is how Bracken found him."

"Also he was likely trying to implicate Representative Boyer, they've been rivals since the Representative was in the Senate," Castle pointed out.

"Bracken was able to take so much because he was skimming from the top for years," Ryan hurriedly continued as Gates nodded to him. "That money then went through the banks, and the accounts used all have the name Oliver opening them; which was his wife's maiden name. Ten names, like Oliver Bonner, Oliver Holmes, Oliver Durfort, and the list continues in that manner. And they were begun around two years ago, but the account was emptied three weeks ago and closed, so we can't track anything else besides that activity."

"You'll have to prove that it was Bracken," Gates said. "The DA wouldn't take into account the first name; it could be anybody that opened that account. Alright, since this is their investigation Beckett, what exactly do you propose to do?"

"I'd like to take Ms. Spencer and her daughter out of the city and watch them tonight for their safety," Beckett said, looking at Esposito.

"We had the idea of trying to use a decoy to bring out the killer and his accomplice since they're in the wind. We'd like to take Hastings and head to the safe house that's been cleared in an attempt to confuse them and draw them to us," Esposito said.

"Ortega and Gillette that you discovered," Gates said. When he nodded she said, "And where will you take them?" directing that to Beckett.

"My father's friend has a cabin, about a mile from my father's. I've been there before and he has security cameras all around the property," she replied. "Taking them there, with two officers to guard the entrance to the property, will give me enough security to protect her. Hague was very specific about Bracken wanting to kill her. And I'm inclined to take him at his word considering what the senator has at his disposal."

"Alright, and I'm assuming you'll want Mr. Castle to go with you?" Gates asked, sounding irritated saying that.

"Actually, we spoke with Ms. Spencer," Ryan said. "And she wants him to go."

"She feels better having someone there with experience with a baby besides herself," Esposito said.

Beckett thanked Carlotta in her mind for that request, since there wasn't anyone else in the station at that moment that had the experience with babies; except Gates and she was of course not an option. But she herself felt better having Castle coming with her, knowing he would be on guard with her as they sat out that night. She shook her head then, looking to Gates who was speaking.

"You're going to need to watch yourself," the captain said sternly. "IA is breathing down my neck about you. The only good thing is you're taking two officers with excellent reputations; Gordon and Thornton."

"Yes sir," Beckett said quickly. "Thank you. We're going to patch the security footage here to the station and Officer Thomas has volunteered to monitor it until the morning shift."

"I need that proof tomorrow, well before Sutcliff's announcement, especially if we're going to arrest Bracken," Gates said. "Where is he?"

"We can't really say, he's sailing with his wife, likely somewhere around Nantucket," Ryan said.

"Track his boat if you can do so inconspicuously," Gates ordered. "And if you can prove it's him without a doubt, bring me the evidence tomorrow Detectives."

Leaving the office, Beckett said to Ryan and Esposito, "I'm leaving now, the sooner I leave the sooner I can get Carlotta and the baby settled for the night. We'll stay until the morning, and you two call, even if it's early. If you have the evidence she wants to present to the DA and judge, then we'll come back to the city."

"Right, we'll see you at the hotel once you're ready," Esposito said to them, Ryan echoing him.

"I'll give you a call once he meets me there," Beckett said simply as Castle next to her gave a nod of agreement before they went to her desk. "I'll see you?" she asked since their partners were close enough to hear.

"Yeah," Castle said simply and then left.

Watching him go, Beckett was a little confused at his abrupt tone, but she finally shook her head and slinging her bag onto her shoulder, left the station, heading home as she texted her father to let him know she and Castle would be coming over as soon as she had their things. She smiled slightly at Ryan who nodded to her, watching her go, and she looked up as the elevator doors closed on her, leaving her alone to her thoughts, racing through her mind before she could really focus on them. She sighed slightly, turning her attention to Julia, thinking already of how to explain why she was leaving, only thankful that her fiancé would be with her to assuage any possible fear their daughter would have about them going.

* * *

Hearing the sound of a key in the lock, Beckett turned to the door and smiled briefly as Castle came into the entry. "Hey, where's your bag?" she asked, setting Julia's overnight bag on the chair next to the door.

"I came straight here," Castle said simply.

"Oh, well, I guess it's better to do that," Beckett said. "We need to talk about what we're going to tell Julia anyways," she told him as she walked into her bedroom, her fiancé following. "We can't tell her the truth, but we can't outright lie to her," she said as she was grabbing the bag she used to take clothes to and from his place. "I was thinking…" she started to say before she turned and saw the expression on his face. "Castle?"

"Kate, you can't do this," Castle said, looking at her intently as he was standing right in front of her.

"I have to," Beckett said simply, shaking her head at him but starting to get a strange feeling at his tone of voice. And at the same time, she felt a sickening sense of déjà vu going through her body. "I can't leave this to anyone else, Carlotta asked for us. But if you're worried about safety, you have to remember, we're doing everything we can to protect her and the baby from Ortega and Gillette."

"From them, yes, but what about Bracken?" Castle asked.

"They're his hit men, I'm more concerned about them than him since they'll be the ones to do his dirty work," Beckett said simply, putting some clothes for the next day into the bag.

"I think you need to be worried about him," Castle said simply. "And you need to stop."

The sudden déjà vu shot through her again, and Beckett straightened up immediately. "You're asking me to do this, now?" she said, turning to him.

"You need to, you can't go after him like this," Castle said, hesitating slightly as he recognized she was getting angry, but not letting himself stop.

"I'm not going after him," Beckett said in exasperation. "I'm trying to protect a mother and child. I'm trying to keep what could have happened to me and Julia from happening to them. This has nothing to do with my mother's murder."

"Then let someone else take Carlotta and Isabella to the cabin, stay here in the city, get that evidence. Let Ryan and Esposito take them," Castle said, his frantic tone making him wince inwardly.

"We'll have protection, and I will be armed," Beckett said. "If you want, you can stay in the city on your own."

"He's going to come after them Kate," Castle said, making her stop.

"And how would you know that?" Beckett asked.

"I know someone at the marina, and he said Bracken; on his own; came in with his ship, and he's here," Castle said.

"Where?" Beckett asked, starting to reach for her phone.

"Here and gone, he got into a car and left," Castle said. "A black car with Maine plates."

"Did he get a number? And when did you find this out?" Beckett asked.

"He got a number, Ryan and Esposito looked at it, and the plate was stolen," Castle said.

"When did you tell them," Beckett said, trying not to clench her teeth together.

"Before we told Gates about this," Castle said.

"You kept this from me? And you think with this, that he's coming after Carlotta," Beckett said.

"This is the one thing that can kill his career better than all the murders he's committed," Castle tried to explain. "He'll kill the baby himself; because she is the biggest risk to him and he's her father he'll see it as his responsibility… and he needs to make sure that the job isn't botched. As it has been before."

"Then I should be there with her, protecting her," Beckett said, not surprised he was mentioning when she was supposed to have been killed by Maddox, twice. "I'm going Castle, I need-"

"Think of Julia," Castle begged her, grabbing her hand. He wasn't surprised when she wrenched it out of his grip and said, "When he finds out where we are, where you are, he'll have all three of you killed; whoever it is that does it. He'll get rid of you, and never have to worry about that account number again."

"And you don't think he'll try to have me killed anyways? If I stayed here, gathering evidence as you suggested I should do," Beckett said, so angry at his mention of their daughter that she almost couldn't get the words out. "Then he would find a way to arrange my death. I'm taking a risk staying on this case, but I'm not going to give up. Not so Isabella is killed by her own father."

"You need to stop trying to make up for what happened in Queens," Castle said, making his fiancée freeze in place. "You're trying to protect this baby because you have the chance to; you're not tied up, or unarmed. But it could get you killed. And what will Julia do without you? You've done this before, and every time it's almost gotten you killed Kate, don't risk your life, we need you; Julia and I need you."

"You think I've run into this without knowing the risks to me, from everyone involved in this whole case? But I can't let him get away with this; I can't let that baby die because I hid behind my desk in fear. I have nothing to prove; what I have to do is protect them. And I never stop thinking about our daughter, about you… Get out," Beckett said.

"What?" Castle asked, shaken at her sudden command.

"Get the hell out. How many times have we done this? Argued over this same thing? I thought you would understand why I'm doing this. But if you can't then I guess I didn't know you as well as I thought," Beckett said, the disappointment bitter on her tongue and sharp in her tone of voice.

Castle tried to speak, to think of how he could respond to that, but he couldn't. Without a word, he turned and left, not caring that he slammed the door behind him as he went out into the hall.

Wincing as she heard that, Beckett looked to the window, not really seeing the view, only feeling the painful clench in her chest as her anger slowly faded as she realized what had just happened. Touching her pendant, she knew she was alone, and she clenched her jaw at the thought before she threw a few more items into her bag before jerking the zippers shut, breaking both zipper pulls with the force. Leaning over on the bed, she closed her eyes, but didn't allow herself to think about anything but Julia; suddenly needing to see her daughter as she pushed herself up and left the room, her broken bag in hand.

* * *

Jumping as the door slammed, Alexis and Martha looked up to see it was Castle before they shared a glance with each other at his expression.

"Richard, what on earth happened?" Martha finally asked as Alexis didn't seem to want to begin.

"Nothing, I…" Castle started to say before he looked over at them. When he saw they didn't believe him, he sighed and went to the armchair across from the couch, but he couldn't stay seated for long, and he jumped back up. Pacing back and forth, he didn't say anything for a minute, and then finally, with another sigh as he realized he had to tell them, explained the argument that he and Beckett had had, and ended with his fiancée's order to leave. "I just see her doing the same as she's done before. I mean, I don't know that Bracken's going to do anything, but those two men are professionals. I can't let what happened to the nurse happen to Kate," he told them.

"Dad, you're acting… a little selfish with this," Alexis said, going to him and making him sit down in the chair. When he looked at her a little angrily she squeezed his shoulder and said, "You don't want to lose her, for your sake, not so much Julia's."

"I… I do," Castle said, having to agree with that as he knew deep down that she was right. "But I've had to hold her as she nearly died, you don't know how many times I've had that same nightmare again. The blood…"

"And it's understandable now that she's trying to stop Bracken," Martha began, going to her son and taking his hand as he had the other over his eyes. "You want to protect her. But Richard, think; she has this chance to end things. If he's convicted, then he'll face life I would assume?"

"He's the one who orchestrated the murders, he would," Castle said.

"Then she's trying to see this through," Alexis said. "To put him away for life. You have enough evidence right?"

"We're gathering it. But the most damning is the letter from Hague, and I know that's why she wants Isabella to be alive. If they can do a DNA test on Bracken, then it'll prove he's the father," Castle said. "There's motive."

"She doesn't want this hanging over her life. Especially right now when she has a child herself, and is going to marry you," Martha said. "No, no," she said quickly when he started to speak. "No self-pity Richard, did she refer to just herself your entire argument?"

"No, and she never said her daughter, it was ours," Castle said.

"She's doing this for you, and your little family," Martha said. "To make sure you won't spend your life together worrying and looking over your shoulder. Not just Carlotta."

"She's right Dad," Alexis said when he looked at her as if for confirmation of that. "Beckett's pretty protective of you; you said she worries about you when you need to wear your vest. She's just trying to make sure Julia has her dad and mom."

Watching as Castle rubbed his face with his hands, Martha asked, "What will you do now?"

"Don't leave her alone again Dad; you were talking about after she got shot. What about when she almost got thrown off the roof of that building?" Alexis asked.

Though he hadn't told his mother or daughter, Castle suddenly recalled how Beckett had told him about calling his name, thinking Ryan had been him. He felt as if he'd punched her in the stomach suddenly; walking out of her place as he had; and that rebounded against himself as he realized he'd left her alone. Standing up, he went into his room without a word to his mother and daughter, not seeing them nod to each other as he was going to Beckett's nightstand, taking her ring before he slammed the drawer shut in his hurry.

* * *

Knocking on the door to her father's apartment, Beckett smiled to herself when she heard Julia squealing inside, but that disappeared when she wondered if that bond between them had stopped. She was expecting to have to reassure her daughter with Castle not there with her, and she looked down at the little girl as her dad opened the door, Julia throwing herself at her. "Here's her bag, I know she has pajamas here already," she was telling Jim as she picked up her daughter.

"Come inside," he said, bringing her in. "Are you okay?" he asked as he turned to his daughter after closing the door, seeing her slightly bemused expression.

"Yeah, sorry," Beckett said, looking at Julia.

"Where are you going Mommy?" the little girl asked, looking at the bag her mother held in her hand still.

"We-" Beckett said before stopping abruptly. Looking into her daughter's eyes, she couldn't correct herself, and said, "We're going to help Carlotta with Isabella tonight, but we will be home tomorrow okay?"

"Kay, Grandpapa says we're gonna go to see the art, all day until dinner," Julia said eagerly.

"I was supposed to ask you first if that was alright," Jim said as his daughter turned to him.

"It's fine though I shouldn't be surprised you want to go there again when you were just there the other day," Beckett said as Julia giggled at that. "I'll give you a call tomorrow when I can. Okay, so let me say goodnight now sweetie. I love you okay?"

"I love you too Mommy," Julia said simply, hugging her tightly around the neck. "And I can't wait to see you tomorrow."

Waiting for Beckett and Julia to share a kiss, Jim said, "Everything's set," in a low voice as he walked his daughter back to the door. "You're sure everything's okay?"

"Yeah, just a protection detail, I tend to be good with those," Beckett explained as she took the key to the cabin he handed her. She had never explained to him about Bracken, wanting to wait until she could tell him that the man was behind bars before she did. "Has she asked about Castle?"

"No, he's meeting you at the hotel right?" Jim asked, glancing at his granddaughter who was looking at her outfit her mother had packed for her the next day.

"Yeah," Beckett said quickly, not wanting him to guess something was wrong from her tone. "Thanks so much for taking her in all day, but I know it's not really a problem."

"Be safe," Jim said as she hugged him then. He studied her when she pulled away and asked, "You're sure you're fine?"

"I'm just thinking about this case," Beckett said. "Night Dad. Bye Julia," she called to her daughter.

"Bye Mommy!" Julia said, looking up from her shirt. When her grandfather had closed the door after her mother she frowned and said, "I feel bad."

"It's okay," Jim said. "She'll find out soon. But for now, let's get ready to go out for our special dinner, okay?"

"Kay," Julia said happily, following him to the closet so he could get his jacket.

Outside her dad's building, Beckett took a cab to the Regency, waiting in the lobby for Esposito and Ryan who soon joined her. "Is the car in the basement parking?" she asked.

"It is, Florida license plates like you asked for," Esposito said. "Where's Castle?"

"Not sure," was all that Beckett said in response to that. "Let's go." As they went to the elevators she asked, "Did you find any connection between Bracken, Ortega and Gillette?"

"They went through the penal system here in the city after he became a senator," Ryan explained. "But, the DA at the time was-"

"A friend of Bracken's?" Beckett asked. When Ryan nodded she sighed and said, "You'll have to try and get in touch with him. Tomorrow of course." They got to the floor where Carlotta's room was and told them, "Alright, once you have Hastings at the safe house, get out of there and head back to the station. Gather whatever you need for the case, and we'll go to Gates as soon as Ca… as soon as I'm back in the city," she told them. They had reached the room, so she missed her partners exchange a glance at that while she knocked on the door.

"Officer," she said to Holsten as she walked inside the room. Turning her head slightly, she froze, nearly causing Ryan to run into her, as she looked at her fiancé who was holding the baby as he spoke to Carlotta. "Castle?" she asked, letting her shock seep into her tone.

* * *

As the door to the bedroom closed, Castle turned to his fiancé and said as sincerely as he could, "I'm sorry."

"I know, it's alright, but, why?" Beckett asked after quickly accepting his apology, more to ask him why he was there.

"Because I couldn't let you be alone again," Castle said. "If something should happen. Your dad and Julia need to know you weren't on your own."

"Thank you. Did you go see them?" Beckett asked him. When he nodded she then asked, "Before I did?" He nodded once again, and she said, "That would explain why Julia didn't seem to be too concerned. Or ask about you. What did you say to them?"

"We can talk about that later," Castle quickly said as the door to the bedroom opened and Carlotta stepped out. He was still surprised at her hair; once a bright red that she'd dyed a dark brown when she'd been informed of the plan to sneak her and her daughter out of the city; but stepped forward to take the carrier Isabella was in.

"Where are we going exactly?" Carlotta asked Beckett nervously as they walked together behind Castle.

"It's better you don't know," Beckett said simply. "But we'll be safe there; the officers who are going to be standing guard at the entrance to the property are already on their way. They'll be there once we get there."

"We'll just be staying for the night," Castle said as they went down to the very bottom of the hotel in the elevator. "But everything you'll need for your baby is there."

"What about sleeping? I-I don't think I want to be near any windows where someone can see me or get in," Carlotta asked.

"There's one bedroom downstairs, it's actually an office, but it has a bed; it has no windows," Beckett said. "I thought of that room because I was thinking the same as you."

Nodding, Carlotta watched as Castle stepped back into the right corner; across from her; as Beckett stepped into the doorway when the doors opened, her hand near her gun. She looked down at Isabella, relieved to see the baby fast asleep.

"Let's go," Beckett whispered, nodding to them. She glanced at her fiancé, relieved when he walked behind her, and in front of Carlotta to give the baby a little more protection. She soon found the car they had gotten from a rental agency, an SUV with heavily tinted windows in the back, the front two only slightly. She stood behind Castle and Carlotta as they got the baby's carrier set in the back, looking around the pools of light in the basement, searching for anyone, anything. She heard the door close, and turned, seeing that Castle was walking to her. "Get in," she said quickly, going around to the driver's side via the front of the car.

Castle was getting frustrated then, climbing into the passenger seat, but he put aside his desire to talk to his fiancée and checked on Carlotta and the baby, seeing they were okay. "How long is this going to take?" he asked Beckett.

"Almost two hours, why do you think I had Thornton and Gordon go ahead already?" she replied.

"I guess we'll need to get settled in," Castle commented in response, looking back.

"We'll be fine," Carlotta said, not looking away from her daughter.

"We will," Beckett said, glancing back in the rearview mirror. She then nodded towards the mirror on Castle's side, not surprised when her fiancé quickly looked out the window at it, and they headed out of the city, keeping their eyes peeled for anything suspicious as she got out to the highway.

* * *

"Wow, was not expecting this," Castle said. "Is your dad's cabin this big?" he asked Beckett as she locked the car and came up to where he was waiting on the porch.

"No, Mr. Sotis built it himself," she replied with a slight smile. "Go inside." She then looked over what she could see of the woods around them, and then went inside, locking the doors. "Thomas?" she asked in her walkie-talkie. She jumped at the static and winced a second later when Isabella started to cry. "Sorry," she whispered to Carlotta.

"Got you going in Beckett, nothing around you, you're good," Thomas said simply.

"Copy, I'll check back in two hours," Beckett said before putting the volume on the walkie-talkie as low as she dared. "She okay?"

"She is, just a little unsettled," Carlotta said, sitting on an armchair in the middle of the room.

"Hungry at all?" Castle asked. "I could get something made really quick."

"There are some readymade meals in there," Beckett said, nodding to the fridge as Castle headed over to the kitchen.

"I know why she's unsettled now," Carlotta said, as her daughter's whimpers dissolved into tears again. "Excuse me," she said, starting to walk towards the doorway but looking at Beckett.

"Here," she said quickly. She led the woman to the room she had talked about; taking the bags that they'd all brought.

"I don't know if I'll want to sleep," Carlotta said. "That blanket, thank you," she told Beckett, taking the thin patterned blanket she handed her from her bag.

"I don't think we will really get much in the way of sleep," Beckett said. She turned back to the woman and said, "I should go, it can't be comfortable for her under that. And I need to check the whole house anyways," she said quickly when Carlotta was about to speak. She left the room, closing the door behind her on the woman's murmuring to her baby, and she smiled a little before she quickly turned her attention to the upstairs bedrooms.

"Are we all clear?" Castle asked as his fiancée came into the kitchen a few minutes later. "Though not sure why you searched the house twice."  
"We need to be careful," Beckett said simply. "Plus I know you want to talk, wanted to mess with you a little."

"Nice of you to do," Castle said. He reached out to her then and took her hand in his tightly saying, "I was worried about you Kate, and apparently; according to my mother and Alexis, being selfish too. Though I swear I was thinking of you and Julia."

"What happened when you went over there?" Beckett asked then.

Castle didn't say anything for a moment then began with, "Julia was with your dad when he answered the door, she was pretty terrified to see me alone," remembering earlier that afternoon.

* * *

_"Where's Katie?" Jim asked as he let his daughter's fiancé into the apartment._

_"She's packing their things," Castle explained, glancing quickly at Julia before Beckett's dad nodded. "Hey sweetheart," he said, turning to the little girl who was staring up at him, her green eyes wider than normal._

_"Why didn't you wait for Mommy?" Julia asked, a little fearfully._

_"She's in a hurry, so I want to make sure I don't make her mad by making her wait for me," Castle said, trying not to wince visibly as he remembered her telling him to get out so angrily earlier and knowing he wasn't making her wait in the slightest. "So I came say goodbye to you, we're going to take care of Isabella and her mom tonight, so we'll be gone until tomorrow okay?" he said as he picked up Julia._

_"Kay, but you'll be with Mommy right?" Julia asked._

_"Yep, I'm going to the hotel, see? I have my clothes for tomorrow right here," Castle told her, showing her his bag. When she relaxed in his arms, he realized she believed him; hoping that he wasn't going to get thrown out of the hotel room as soon as his fiancée got there. To shake that thought from his mind, he quickly said, "I better get going, so I'll say goodnight okay?"_

_"Kay," Julia said, hugging him tightly around the neck._

_"I love you sweetheart, have fun with your grandfather before we see you tomorrow," Castle told her. After Julia nodded once he shared a kiss with her he said, "Think you can surprise your mom for me?"_

_"How?" Julia asked._

_"Don't tell her I was here okay? I'll surprise her later when she gets to the hotel by being there already," Castle said. When the little girl nodded he kissed her cheek and then set her down, telling her goodbye._

_"Go ahead and color honey, I'll talk to Castle right here for a second," Jim told his granddaughter before he followed him out into the hall, leaving the door opened a crack. "What happened?"_

_"We got into a fight, but, I'm going with her still, just don't tell her, please," Castle said quickly. "I need to be there and don't want her to throw me out. I need to apologize."_

_Looking doubtful, Jim finally nodded and said, "Make sure you both come home to her," nodding back into his apartment._

_"Believe me, we'll do that," Castle said. Saying goodbye to Beckett's father, he turned and left, reaching into his pocket to make sure it was still there before reaching the elevators._

* * *

"Oh, almost forgot, I brought this," Castle said when he'd finished telling her about Julia.

Beckett watched as he held her palm up and set her ring in it, making her smile as she shook her head. "And if you'd lost this?" she asked.

"I wouldn't, it's way too important to us, though honestly, it's mostly symbolic," Castle said, watching her take off her necklace to slide the ring onto the chain. "So… are we-"

"I know why you do that Castle, and I appreciate your being that concerned, but this is something I need to do," Beckett said.

"I know, I guess there's a part of me that kind of craves nothing happening in our lives, letting us just be parents and get married and everything with that," Castle said. "Without us being put in danger. But my mom and Alexis also mentioned you probably don't want to go into our marriage with this hanging over our heads."

"I need to bring him down Castle," Beckett said, holding her pendant and ring in her hand. "And if it's through this, I'll take the chance I have."

"Are you talking about Isabella's father?" a voice said from the hallway, making the two jump. When they stared at her Carlotta smiled briefly, tears in her eyes as she whispered, "Who is he?"

"He…" Beckett began to say, looking at her fiancé.

"I need to know, especially since it sounds like he's worse than a rapist," Carlotta murmured.

"His name is William Bracken," Beckett said slowly.

"Senator Bracken?" Carlotta asked in shock, tensing up. "But… I nearly worked for his wife…"

"Sit," Castle and Beckett said at the same time, rushing to help the paling woman sit down at the kitchen table. He took the baby as she sat next to Carlotta saying, "He has nothing to do with the baby."

"He's right," Beckett said quickly. "He fathered Isabella, but I can't imagine you'd let him be anything else."

"No, but, how do you know him?" Carlotta asked. When Beckett started to pass off the acquaintance, she said, "I heard you, why are you in danger Beckett?"

Looking at Castle who quickly took the baby to the bassinet that was in the living room, Beckett turned back to Carlotta and said, "You can't repeat this to anyone."

"Believe me, my life is at risk enough already," Carlotta said.

Taking a deep breath, Beckett finally decided that Carlotta had to know who the father of her baby really was, and she explained about her mother's death and Bracken's involvement as simply as she could; never mentioning Captain Montgomery. When she had finished, she was a little startled to see food on the table, and Castle setting down some water before handing her a glass. She glanced at Carlotta, seeing the tears in the woman's eyes again, and said, "But your baby won't be like him. I don't see you letting her."

"I'm not concerned about that," the woman said. "But is that why you don't really want much to do with her?"

Beckett was going to speak, when Castle beat her to it saying, "It's because she's armed. She doesn't like to be near kids if she can help it while she's got her weapon on her."

"He's right," Beckett said. "I try not to be around my daughter if I have my gun. And I wouldn't want to be near a baby if I can help it." At Carlotta's nod, she then said, "We're doing all we can to get enough to arrest him and put him away, for life."

"I hope you can do that," Carlotta said. "Excuse me."

"Want something stronger?" Castle asked, sitting on the other side of his fiancée.

"I'm on duty still," Beckett said simply. "Thanks for explaining. I should have realized you'd figure it out."

"Eat something, you look tired," Castle murmured in response, not sure what he would be able to say to that, since it was true. "Sorry."  
"I was a willing participant in that," Beckett said quickly. She turned to Carlotta who was going to the bassinet and asked with a quick smile, "She's awake?"

"She's sleeping through the nights, but she doesn't have her pattern down quite yet," Carlotta told them as she sat down with Isabella on her lap, facing them. "She's been okay the last few nights, but tonight she might be waking up on and off. To warn you both."  
"Nothing I haven't been through before," Castle said with a shrug.

"It might help me," Beckett said. "I need to stay awake until morning."

"You have to let me take a watch for you," Castle said, frowning at that. When his fiancée looked at him he quickly said, "You've been up since… earlier, and you drove here."

"Maybe before we head back into the city," Beckett said simply. "I'll see," she said firmly as Castle opened his mouth to protest.

Rocking her baby gently back and forth, Carlotta smiled at them and said, "It's amazing no one's guessed about you two."

"Or they have and no one's said anything," Castle said, shrugging. "Is your food okay?" he asked to get them off the subject quickly since he knew Beckett wouldn't want to talk about it.

Beckett took that opportunity to further get away from the subject, trying to cheer up Carlotta by asking about her baby through the meal. As Castle cleared the table, she helped him and they would look back at the mother who was pacing back and forth in the space between the kitchen and living room. "You can get some sleep," she said, going over to her once she had handed Castle the last of the glasses.

"I think for now I'd like to stay here," Carlotta said, smiling a little nervously.

"That's fine, we should get comfortable," Beckett said, leading her to the couch. She remained standing, waiting for Castle to join them before she murmured to him and then left.

"She's just going to do a quick check," Castle told Carlotta as the mother looked to him worriedly. At her nod, he touched his jacket pocket, where his fiancée's backup was, which she'd given to him, warning him only to use it if absolutely necessary, and threatening to shoot him in the leg if he didn't keep the safety on while they were around the baby. He heard a crackle of static electricity then, and guessed she was speaking with Thomas or the two officers at the entrance to the property. A second later she reappeared and he asked, "All clear?"

Shooting him a momentary look at that, Beckett nodded and said, "We can relax now, Gordon and Thornton are going to split up their watch, so one of them will be well rested. LT is going to relieve Thomas at about three and Ryan and Esposito got Hastings back to the station. A car followed them, but hung back before they cruisers could get to it and they lost it. So they'll be thinking we're still in the city, and likely you and the baby are at the station for the night."

Sitting down on the couch, Castle watched his fiancée go to the windows, before coming back and pausing to look at Isabella in the bassinet. He was a little surprised when she then went to the kitchen, and he watched her begin some coffee. When her eyes met his, he sat back, turning his attention to Carlotta and the baby, telling from that glance what she wanted him to do. He found himself a little tense, and when Beckett joined them; handing them mugs of the coffee; he realized that even though he had apologized, it in no way changed his worry about her. He watched her again as she sat next to him on the couch, her right hand on her thigh, never far from her gun or walkie-talkie as they began their watch together.

* * *

It was nearly two in the morning, and nothing had changed since the three had had their coffee hours before. They were all nervous, and as time had gone on, Carlotta had grown paler as Beckett watched her closely. "Are you okay?" she asked the woman, alone with her and the baby since Castle had gone upstairs.

"I… no, please," Carlotta said as she was walking around in a circle with Isabella in her arms. She handed the baby to Beckett; though she tried to protest; and dashed for the bathroom next to the office.

A little shocked at the abruptness of that; Beckett looked down at the baby in her arms, and frowned before Isabella began to whimper. Shaking off her hesitation, she gently bounced the baby, murmuring to her until she had calmed down, studying her closely. The baby had a wisp of her mother's formerly red hair, though it was darker, her eyes were still the deep blue newborns had, and she wondered who Isabella would follow as she grew. She was startled from her thoughts when the baby grabbed her pendant, and she carefully took it out of her tiny hand, letting her take her finger instead. "I wonder if you'll be like your mother, you seem to like colors already," she said softly, smiling when Isabella made a cooing noise, as if agreeing with her.

Standing at the top of the stairs, Castle watched his fiancée for a long moment before finally shaking himself and going down to her. "Hey, I really didn't think you would want to hold her after… finding out," he said, going straight to her and touching the baby's hand that was clutching Beckett's index finger.

"She's not her father," she replied simply to that, though she wasn't surprised her fiancé had had that thought.

"Also didn't know you knew how to hold a baby," Castle then said.

"I do," Beckett said simply with a slight smile. "I do have friends who've had kids and have held them. But this seems… different."

Castle opened his mouth to comment on that, but at that moment Carlotta came out from the hallway and he saw she looked almost grey. "Are you okay?" he asked in concern.

"Just a little sick, it's the anxiety I'm feeling now," Carlotta replied, taking Isabella from Beckett. "I feel a little better."

"You-" Beckett started to say before she paused.

"What?" Carlotta asked as Castle and Beckett turned towards the windows at the same time.

Holding up her hand to keep her quiet, Beckett started to walk towards the windows in the living room when there was a rustling outside; that had nothing to do with wind.

"I heard it too," Castle whispered quickly when his fiancée looked to him.

And as soon as those words were out of his mouth, the lights in the cabin went out, plunging them into darkness that was unbroken by even the stars in the early hours of the morning outside.


	18. Blood Of The People You Killed

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The title of this chapter is a lyric from the song Bring on the Lucie (Freeda Peeple) by John Lennon, from his album Mind Games.

Taking her gun out of its holster, Beckett went to the windows facing the back of the property as she motioned for Castle to look out the window next to the front door. She scanned the backyard; where the fuse box was; but was unable to see any shadows moving, her breath almost fogging the glass. "I need to go out," she said quietly, trying to hear if someone walked up onto the porch as she looked to her fiancé and he shook his head. She took her walkie-talkie and switched it to the frequency the two officers were on and said, "Gordon, Thornton, call in." She waited for a response, but when there was only static, she turned back and strode across the living room as she knew what had likely happened to the two officers. "Take her," she said to her fiancé. "To the room in back, stand at the entrance to the hallway and don't move until I come back."

Nodding, Castle waited for her to go to the door and after she had contacted the police dispatch in the tiny town at the base of the mountain they were on for help said, "When you come back-"

"I'll yell through the door," Beckett interrupted him. She glanced back at Carlotta then, seeing the expression on her face, and called to the woman, "It'll be alright, just stay in that room and try and keep Isabella quiet if you can." She felt Castle take her arm and she looked up at him saying, "I'll be fine."

"Still, I love you Kate," Castle said before he let her go quickly.

"I love you too Rick," Beckett said in a rush before turning back to the door. She stepped out of the way as it swung open, and glanced over her shoulder to see Castle herding Carlotta and the baby to the hallway. Bringing her gun up once they were out of sight, she stepped outside slowly, eyes scanning back and forth as far as she could see. There was nothing but trees surrounding the white stone driveway, and she went out, looking at the corners of the cabin she could see, going back and forth with her gun as well as she went down the steps. When she was on the brick path up to the home, she heard the snap of a twig, and turned to her right before seeing the shadow of a man. Starting to run that way, she heard a sudden muffled shot below her, near the gates to the property, and turned back in that direction. She paused, unsure of which way to go since it appeared she was already outnumbered.

A rustle of foliage to her right again, and Beckett was taking off as there were two figures there. She couldn't hear anyone else as she went, so she ran down the rest of the way to the stream. A sudden shot exploded in the darkness in front of her, and she was ducking down to the ground as a bullet whizzed past. Looking ahead in the dim light, she tried to make out the trees to see the figures that were moving. Unable to discern them, she stood up slowly, her gun aimed in front of her. "I'm with the NYPD," she said loudly, her voice echoing down into the forest. "Show yourselves," she said when there was only the silence of the foliage around her.

There was something running ahead of her, and Beckett started to step towards the figure that was nothing but a shadow, when she was suddenly grabbed from behind. She tried to jam her elbow back against her attacker as he picked her up, then resorting to trying to kick the man between his legs. But he threw her ahead of him, and she had little time to do a quick tuck and roll to come up on one knee, her gun raised. "Don't move!" she yelled to the man. It was then that she could see him more clearly, and saw the rifle in his hand, a full clip attached to it.

"Put it down," the man said, his voice deep and containing a slight accent.

"Now!" another man yelled behind her.

Feeling the muzzle of yet another rifle at the back of her head, Beckett set down her gun on the ground next to the river she had ended up by on the property. She stood at the man in front of her's command, her hands up, straining her ears at the same time to hear the sound of sirens, hoping without much luck for a sign the local PD had arrived.

"He wants her dead too?" the man behind her said.

"I've got her," her attacker said simply. "Get the others in the cabin."

Beckett heard the rustle of grass and twigs as the man behind her left, and she stayed where she was, watching her attacker carefully though she still couldn't see his face.

"Alright, right here on the ground," the attacker said, making a gesture with the gun in front of him. "Facing away from me."

Stepping forward slowly, carefully, Beckett let her hands start shaking, hoping it would work as the man pushed at her shoulder. That was all she needed, and she moved, completing a spinning kick that knocked the rifle out of the man's hands. But he was quick to shove her back on the ground, taking a handgun out of a holster at his hip. She was back up, and she ran at him, knocking him down as the weapon flew out of his hand.

There was a scramble as the two reached for the gun and ended up getting their hands on it at the same time. The attacker pulled at the weapon, but Beckett wouldn't let go, trying to get his finger away from the trigger as he tried to push her back.

The struggle continued as Beckett's boots slid on the mud at the shore of the rushing water, but she managed to get her hand under his. But just as she did, there was an explosion of pain in her nose, and she jerked back. She would never be able to figure out later who ended up pulling the trigger as she still held on, but the report of the gun firing was loud as the kickback from it sent her tumbling back as she lost the last of her precarious balance. With the gun pointed at her attacker, he fell with her into the storm-swollen river that had once been a gentle creek. She was lost in black water, and tried to make sense of where she was when a heavy branch knocked into both her and her attacker, separating them as the water dragged them and the discarded weapon along with its new, faster current.

* * *

Standing in the entrance to the hall, Castle had Beckett's back up in hand, keeping his finger from the trigger as he remembered his fiancée's admonition. But he couldn't help jump slightly hearing the rustle of the wind that made him think whoever it was outside was surrounding the house. He looked at his cell phone again, making sure there was no reception. It was then he heard a shattering sound of glass and raised the gun to protect him as he ran to the living room. He stopped short when he saw the stone on the ground, and was about to turn when something exploded on the side of his head and with a grunt he went down to his knees.

The blow wasn't hard enough to knock him out, and Castle was just able to hold onto the gun as he raised it up to his attacker. "Put that down," he said, ignoring the blood trickling down his left temple. "Step back," he said, trying to control his hands which were shaking momentarily before he was able to get them to stop.

The attacker raised his hands, but then lowered them and when Castle moved his finger to shoot, shook his head.

Pausing at that, Castle whirled around and saw two men standing behind him, Bracken, and Officer Gordon.

"Put it down Castle," the officer said. "Slowly."

Seeing no way out, Castle looked around as he was lowering himself to do what the armed officer had said, and just before he touched his gun to the floor, fired at Gordon before taking off for the front door, desperate to get the men away from Carlotta and the baby though he was nearly struck as the officer sent a wild shot his way. As he ran outside, he yelled, "Beckett!" With no answer he hurriedly went to his left, not realizing she had gone the opposite way. He was around the back of the house, when he heard the sound of a gun being fired in the air, and he skidded to a stop in the backyard of the cabin, turning around.

"Drop the gun," Gordon said, his weapon aimed at the writer's head. When Castle had tossed the gun in front of them he called over his shoulder, "I have him."

Watching as Bracken came around the corner with Gillette, Castle saw the gun in the latter's hand a second before he shot. There was no time to warn the officer, and he jumped back as the man stiffened with the bullet to the back of his head, collapsing as his blood was soon seeping through his dark hair; black on black. He looked up as Gillette stepped forward and started to take another step back when Bracken stopped the attacker.

"I'll take care of him myself," the senator said. "Go into the cabin, and get the baby."

Castle was holding his breath, waiting as Gillette went to the back door, slipping inside quietly before he took the chance and lunged for Beckett's back up piece. But the bullet slicing into the grass made him stop and he looked up at the senator.

"You should never really underestimate your enemy," Bracken said, holding another gun. When Castle started to move he yelled, "Stay there, I will shoot!" When he stopped, the senator then said, "Get on the ground."

Getting on his knees, Castle watched the man approach him and said, "Why?"

"You already know," Bracken said simply.

Castle took that opportunity to lunge at the senator and felt the whoosh of air as a bullet sliced past his arm before he tackled the man to the ground. He grabbed for the gun, and found himself having to fight for it, the senator stronger than he'd thought. He grunted hard when Bracken hit him on the side of the nose, enough to make blood start to trickle from it. But he couldn't feel the pain, the adrenaline taking care of that as he managed to wrench the weapon from the man's hands. Before he could use it to protect himself, he was suddenly knocked down, and when he came back up, arms were around his neck, squeezing him, cutting off his air. Reaching up to get Bracken to let go of him, he dropped the gun and collapsed, panting to the ground as the man went for his weapon.

Yet again, Bracken held the gun aimed at Castle, but the writer jumped at him before he could straighten, going for his legs and knocking him down on his back before he could fire.

Jumping over to where the gun had landed, Castle just barely had his hand around it, when Bracken punched him directly in the face. That time the adrenaline couldn't stop the pain that roared in his nose, and he groaned in pain when he heard the safety of Beckett's back up weapon suddenly being turned off. The question of when it had been put back shooting through his head unreasonably as his blood flowed over his hand. When he looked up, Bracken had the gun pointed at him, finger on the trigger poised to fire.

* * *

Pulling herself up out of the water, using the branch that had stopped her downstream journey, Beckett was panting for air, looking around her as she tried to get her bearings. She was a little startled to realize that she herself hadn't gone far, the cabin a short distance away and her gun nearby which she grabbed as she stood on the shore. She quickly turned to make sure her attacker wasn't about to grab her and when she saw his body on a log that had fallen into the water she waded to him, pulling him out. It was a struggle since he was so much bigger than she, but she finally had him out. He was bleeding though checking his pulse she found it still going though weak, but there was nothing she could do for the wound to his abdomen. She then was quiet waiting to hear her other attacker approaching them, and heard rustling in the trees that made her whirl around, her gun drawn. But seeing it was just a small animal, a squirrel, she began to slowly head up to the cabin.

The first shout made Beckett stop, and waiting for it again, she could make out the name Lawrence, up by the cabin though the sound was distorted. She walked back to it, and kept her ears peeled for the other attacker who was Lawrence. She came to a cluster of woods though, and paused as there was a man lying out on the dirt; Lawrence, lying dead as he stared blankly at the night sky, she wasn't sure who he was, realizing there'd been yet another man in Bracken's entourage; another member of it yelling for him from the building.

The shout of, "Stay there, I'll shoot," reached her, and Beckett began to run towards it, slipping on the grass as she was still dripping water under her boots. She felt she was so far from the cabin though, that it didn't seem like she'd be able to make it back. There was a shot, and it made her nearly skid and fall to the ground, her heart pounding even harder at the noise. There was only a moment's pause, and she was racing to the cabin, trying to return.

Almost bursting through the last of the trees before the yard surrounding the cabin, Beckett wasn't surprised to find herself alone, and she looked around before heading up to the building. When she reached the front door she was slightly hesitant, afraid of what she might see. But there was no one in the darkness, and she whispered, "Carlotta?" as she couldn't see her fiancé's form at the entrance to the downstairs hall. There was no reply, from anyone, and she peered inside more, carefully, slowly, looking back to make sure someone wasn't following her when she couldn't see anyone on the first floor.

There was only darkness, and the silence of the moment made Beckett go past the door then and she walked down the porch to the edge, which felt as if it took longer than it actually did. She stepped down onto the grass surrounding the cabin into the slight wind that reminded her she was soaking wet, but felt her bare neck suddenly breaking out into goose bumps that had nothing to do with the breeze. She concentrated on any sounds again, and looked into the darkness as that was all she could see as she held her gun in front of her. She walked to the corner, unsure of what to look out for, unsure if she was prepared to see what she couldn't think up in her mind before she finally turned.

There was nothing there, only the darkness and the deafening silence of the forest night.

It was then she heard the sound of a grunt of pain, and Beckett hurried to the corner of the cabin, running over the grass as quickly as she could, heading to the backyard as she could hear twigs snapping under whoever was fighting. There was a sudden yell and a punch to the face a second later as she reached the corner, and she paused there, waiting to tell if she and Castle were outnumbered still; since it'd been him that had yelled. She could only hear two men fighting, so she braced herself again, prepared to turn the corner, her gun ready to fire.

But the sudden click of the safety of a gun made everything stop suddenly, the sounds of the forest the only thing to break the silence.

"You can't… she'll still find you," Castle said then, his voice sounding distorted, as if he was sick suddenly. "She'll hunt you down and she won't care if you're alive or dead once she finds you."

"How will she when she'll be dead herself?" Bracken said, his teeth clenched in pain as Castle had managed to bruise his ribs in their scuffle for one of the guns.

Taking in those words as she started to move, Beckett turned the corner of the cabin, and saw Castle on his knees in front of Bracken, his hands up in the air; nose dripping blood into the ground. She took in the scene before yelled, "Drop your weapon Bracken!"

"This is why I'm here," the senator said, not taking his eyes; or the gun; off of Castle. "I needed to take care of this myself."

"Put the gun down," Beckett said, her voice steady though she could see all Bracken had to do was press the trigger and she would find herself without her fiancé. "Put it down!" her anxiety suddenly made her yell.

Looking at Beckett for the briefest of moments, Castle turned his gaze up to Bracken, and he shook his head so infinitesimally slowly that he only hoped his fiancée had seen him. With that, he tossed up some dirt he'd managed to grab in his hands as he'd been recovering from the senator's punch to his face, making Bracken reach up for his eyes.

Beckett was about to start running for the senator, when Bracken recovered and everything began to slow down.

Castle was lunging for the senator's legs to get him off balance again to give them some time to overpower him. Bracken was swinging his arm down so the gun in his hand was aimed at the writer, finger back on the trigger. The report of the shot that Beckett fired echoed through the woods, and the senator turned a second before, taking the shot to his shoulder, collapsing to the ground as Castle scrambled to get out of his way.

Without a word, Beckett ran for the cabin, heeding her fiancé's yelled, "There's one more in there!" as he took off his jacket to staunch the wound that seemed to be bleeding copiously. She went to where she knew were some towels, calling as loudly as she could, "Carlotta!" She paused, a thick towel in her hand, waiting for something; anything; but receiving only silence. That was broken suddenly by Castle yelling her name, and she ran, hearing the faint sound of sirens as she stepped outside, stopping with a jerk as she saw Bracken, lying on his back, his eyes wide open and blood drenching Castle's jacket and the grass around him. "What…" she began, looking at her fiancé.

"He turned and bled out," Castle said, holding up his hands that had been splashed with the senator's blood that had gushed when the man had tried to get up, fighting against him as he'd done so. "I tried to stop him but…"

"They'll have seen that," Beckett said, handing him the towel. She went to Bracken, and feeling for his pulse let out a shuddering breath as she realized he was dead. She studied the bullet wound on his shoulder, just barely seeing the angle her shot had gone into him at after he'd turned towards her, likely severing an artery after he'd moved, losing the pressure that was keeping his blood from pouring out of him before he'd gotten up.

"Is he…?" Castle asked, standing behind her. "He told the other man with him to go inside to get Isabella."

"Have you seen her or Carlotta?" Beckett asked, standing up.

"No, she must be hiding still. And I haven't heard any screams or shots in there; though… he might have had a silencer," Castle said, the words feeling a little hollow as he spoke them.

"Stay here," Beckett told him. "And I'll look for them." She took a step towards the cabin when she heard Castle following her.

"I need to wash my hands, badly," he told her simply, holding his bloodied hands in front of him again. He was relieved when she nodded, and he followed, though was careful to stay slightly behind as she cleared the bottom floor of the one other man that Bracken had brought.

Going up the stairs when she didn't find Carlotta in the office that had the door wide open, Beckett kept her hands around her gun, but had it down, in no way wanting to scare Carlotta by pointing it at her or the baby. As she turned at the top of the staircase, she stopped abruptly when she saw Gillette lying on the floor down the hall, a bullet wound to the back of his head. And a few feet in front of him, with a gun that had a silencer on it in her hand, was Carlotta. Running down to the woman, Beckett saw she was too late; the woman's throat had been slit and her blood was pooling below her neck, her eyes open wide but seeing nothing. She swallowed hard as she realized the cut was shallow enough to have allowed the young mother to slowly bleed to death as her killer had demanded to know where the baby was. Reaching up, she lowered Carlotta's eyelids, when Castle called up to her.

"Did you find them?" he said, a little concerned with how quiet it was inside the cabin.

"I found Carlotta, she's dead," Beckett said. She stood and went into the closed room that the bodies were in front of, half expecting to see the baby in the same condition. But it was empty, and she paused, about to turn and leave when she heard a kind of cooing sound that was muffled. Holstering her gun, she ran to the closet, and inside on a pile of blankets that had been stored there she found Isabella, cradled safely and kicking her legs, moving her arms as if in protest of her surroundings. "Hey," Beckett said, trying her best to smile when the baby looked at her with wide eyes. She wasn't surprised when Isabella started to cry then, and she picked the baby up, murmuring comfortingly to her as she held her against her chest, cupping the back of her delicate head to turn her away from the bodies, not caring the baby wouldn't understand if she saw them. "I have her," she said, going down the stairs.

"Beckett!" Esposito's voice suddenly yelled outside as the sirens reached the cabin. "Castle! Where are you?"

Looking at her fiancé, Beckett shook her head when he reached for Isabella and called, "We're in here," looking out the windows to the backyard, seeing some officers there discovering Bracken. "We're alright," she said, though her tone held no emotion as their partners ran inside. She looked down at the baby, murmuring to her as Isabella began to cry again, the shock of everything hitting her in that moment and making her senseless to anything else around her as Castle led her outside, Ryan and Esposito stepping out of the way as they came out into the cool night air, her arms holding the baby protectively to her.

* * *

"So your nose isn't broken," an EMT was telling Castle.

"That's a relief," he responded, leaning over to look around the man to try and see outside.

"But it will be if you don't stop moving around," the EMT then said.

"Sorry, just worried about my partner," Castle said.

"You shouldn't be bro," Esposito said. "Or about yourself."

"So we've been cleared?" Castle asked as Esposito was standing at the end of the ambulance he was in.

"Yeah, Thomas let us know that you tried to keep him on the ground, but short of sitting on him, you wouldn't have been able to. Especially since the blood was pretty much everywhere," the detective replied.

"How's Beckett?" Castle asked then.

"Not too good, she's in shock, but emotional shock," Ryan said, walking up to his partner. "She's not letting go of the baby until Child Services comes."

"She's thinking of Julia," Castle commented. "And her mother." Seeing the looks the two exchanged he said, "She's going to feel guilty that she wasn't able to save Carlotta."

At that same moment, Beckett was cradling Isabella in her arms as she waited for an officer to bring the carrier that was still inside the cabin. She had declined to hand the baby to anyone else, wanting to keep her close, as if to apologize through her nurturing for failing to protect the baby's mother in the end. She knew it was a little ridiculous to do that, but she wasn't able to convince herself to stop.

"Detective?" a woman said, coming up to her.

"You're from Child Services?" Beckett asked.

"Yes, I've come to pick up Isabella," the woman said, murmuring over the baby as she shifted in Beckett's arms. "Was she injured at all in the attack?"

"No, her mother hid her in a closet in one of the rooms, and managed to keep anyone from going into the room before she was killed," Beckett said hollowly.

"Here's the carrier," an officer said, holding it up.

"Would you like to?" the Child Services worker asked. "Since she's asleep." She was a little surprised when Beckett didn't reply to that at all, simply walked to her car.

As she waited for the woman to set the carrier in the back, Beckett held Isabella a little tighter as she suddenly opened her eyes, trying to communicate through their gaze on one another that she was sorry. "I can put her in," she said simply when the worker started to reach for Isabella. She got into the back, and carefully put the baby in the carrier, murmuring softly until she was finished. "What will happen to her?" she asked.

Closing the car door, the worker said, "It depends on if her mother had a will, if not, then likely she'll go to her nearest family member if they're deemed fit to take custody of her."

"She has a sister," Beckett said. At the woman's nod, she stepped back as the worker got into the car, and finally forced herself to walk up the grass to the ambulance where she knew her fiancé was.

"It's not the same as what happened to her mother," Esposito was saying doubtfully to Castle's comment about the situation being similar to Beckett's mother's murder.

"It's close enough," a voice said behind the two detectives. Beckett's lips quirked up in as much a smile as she could manage as they looked at her in shock and nodded her head saying, "Ortega's dead."

"Isabella?" Castle asked as he realized her hands her empty.

"She's with Child Services," Beckett replied. "They're taking her into the city and will keep her until they know what her mother wanted to have happen to her or try and see if Carlotta's sister is fit to raise her."

"I think we better go talk to the ME," Ryan said, nudging Esposito in the side as he noticed the way the two were looking at each other.

"Yeah, good idea," Esposito said quickly. "But Beckett, you're cleared; of Bracken's death and Ortega's too since there's a camera on the fence about twenty feet from where he got to you, Thomas saw the shot was because you were fighting over the gun. It had night vision in case you're wondering how that was possible." When she didn't react to that he said in slight discomfort, "Just thought you'd want to know. Castle's been cleared too."

Nodding at that, Beckett turned to her fiancé and asked the EMT, "Okay to talk to him?"

"Go ahead, he doesn't need to go to the hospital, but he'll have a nasty headache and bruise from the blow to his head. Judging by the fight he mentioned he had, he'll have more bruises as well. But nothing serious so he can go whenever he's ready," the man said before getting out of the ambulance.

"Your nose?" Beckett asked, climbing up to sit next to the stretcher he was on.

"Unbroken, though maybe it wouldn't have been too bad, would have been a butch accessory," Castle said, reaching up to his nose but not touching it as it was by then dark with bruising and sore already. He was relieved when Beckett smiled at that and he started to move his hand before pausing. "I wish I could…"

"I know," Beckett said quickly, knowing what he was going to say. She then said, "It's over."

"It is but… is this enough?" Castle asked, looking into her face searchingly.

"I don't know, I'm still in shock as Ryan was saying," Beckett said.

"It's an abrupt finish to something that's been consuming your life for years," Castle said. "But you have to look at the positive in this, Isabella is alive. And I know," he said quickly when she looked like she was going to protest at that. "Carlotta was… killed but we were outnumbered, severely," he continued, ending bitterly. "Not much positive in that, I'm sorry."

"I know what you're trying to do," Beckett replied, squeezing his arm once, quickly. "But we were outnumbered so it was all we could do to keep ourselves alive. Gordon… according to Esposito, he was very heavily in debt, and we're guessing Bracken paid him to keep him apprised of what was going on with our case," she then told him. "Which included our ruse with Hastings, so they did their own to keep us from realizing they knew where we were going."

"Who shot Thornton?" Castle inquired.

"They're not sure yet, but likely Gordon," Beckett said slowly. She studied him for a moment and then said, "If you want to know, Carlotta was able to get the gun away from Gillette when he cut her throat and was trying to get her to tell him where Isabella was."

"So Gillette was handy with a knife too it looks like," Castle said.

"More than likely he was taught by Ortega; since they were friends in jail together," Beckett reminded him; having learned that from Ryan the day before.

"So what now?" Castle asked, watching her.

"We go back to the city and I'll head into the station to finish up my report on what happened tonight while you need to speak to Ryan or Esposito to give them your statement," Beckett said. "And I'll stay to finish up my paperwork for my part in the case because I can't see her."

"What time is it?" Castle asked, looking at his watch then. "Damn it, you're right, it's barely five. How are you?" he then queried, nodding to her bruised nose that nearly matched his.

"Okay. I have some bruises too, mostly from the branches in the river before I was stopped from heading any further than I did. But she's going to worry you know," Beckett said.

"We'll talk to her," Castle said. "And reassure her. Good thing nothing worse happened." He paused then and asked, "What's going to happen to Bracken's body?"

"Perlmutter's going to be called in when it gets to the city," Beckett replied. "They talked to Lanie first, but she refused to have anything to do with the body."

"That sounds like her," Castle said, looking over her shoulder then. "She says we need to leave?"

"Yeah, Gates just called me," Ryan said, walking up to them. "If you feel up to going back in the SUV?"

"Not a problem, I just have to use this ice pack," Castle said. "Don't you need the same?" he asked Beckett, swinging his legs over the edge of the stretcher. "Better use one," he said when she frowned at him. "Didn't you say Julia gets worried about you getting hurt?"

"LT will drive you guys back in the car, Gates wants to speak with you both at the Precinct," Ryan said as Beckett took the ice pack that Castle handed her. "We'll be back as soon as we can, and I need to get your statement then."

"Am I off the case?" Beckett asked her partner as Ryan held out his hand for her to use to step out. She waved it away as she came out and watched Castle step down after her, wincing slightly as he got to the ground. "Knee?" she asked, forgetting her question in her concern for her fiancé.

"It'll be fine," he said simply.

"Gates wants us to wrap everything up," Ryan said when Beckett had turned to him. "Because IA is likely going to be clamoring for her to do something after all this. Never mind that you were obviously keeping Bracken from shooting Castle."

"Look," Beckett said as Esposito joined them in walking to the SUV still parked in front of the cabin. "If I get fired for this… I could care less."

"You're serious?" Esposito asked as he looked at his partner.

"I have more to my life than this job," Beckett said simply before she climbed into the car.

"Where is Julia?" Ryan asked.

"She said earlier she's with her grandfather," Castle said with a shrug. "And about her job… could they really fire her?"

"Maybe, but Gates will do everything she can to prevent them from doing that," Ryan said. "Hopefully she'll be okay."

Castle nodded and then went around to the other side, sitting in the middle of the seat as he and his fiancée watched Ryan and Esposito split up, going to the creek and the backyard while LT turned them around to head out of the property. "Think Mr. Sotis is going to be angry?" he asked quietly as they both looked back at the lights from the numerous cruisers spread across the front yard of the cabin.

"Likely, but I'm sure my dad will talk to him and explain everything," Beckett said.

"You're going to tell him?" Castle asked, watching her closely.

"I need to; he needs to know what happened. And why Mom…" Beckett said quietly, looking ahead of them to see if LT heard her. She turned then when she felt Castle's hand on hers, and she glanced down at it before he moved it to lie next to hers. She moved her hand over enough to weave some of their fingers together as they settled back against the seat, letting silence descend as they faced the two hour drive back to the Precinct, never breaking their touch as it cut through their exhaustion and shock of that long night with each mile they passed.


	19. Something So Dear To Me

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The title of this chapter is a lyric from the song Mystical One by George Harrison, from his album Gone Troppo.

"Beckett," LT said suddenly from the front seat, jolting her and Castle awake in the back. "Sorry, but we've got the street blocked off."

"Can you make a u-turn?" Beckett asked, shaking off her sleep and leaning forward to look out the windshield. She saw what the officer was talking about, seeing the street in front of the station was blocked off by media. She glanced at Castle, seeing his surprise, and said, "Try to turn around, we can't go through that, they'll probably guess it was me that killed Bracken if they know how he died already."

Though he had to do a three point turn, LT was able to go around to the back alley behind the Precinct where he dropped off Castle and Beckett, waiting to make sure they got in without anyone from the media managing to see them before taking off to return the SUV.

"Think Gates is here?" Castle asked as they took the elevator up.

"Maybe," Beckett said simply, fighting back a yawn.

"You think you'd be up to talking to her right now?" Castle said, watching her.

"And you?" Beckett returned as she looked at him.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Castle said quickly. He studied his fiancée as they stepped out to the fourth floor and looked up as her name was called, followed by his. "So that answers my question," he said under his voice as they went directly to Gates' office.

Beckett didn't reply to that, not saying a word until the door was closed behind them and she and Castle were sitting opposite their captain's desk. "Are you taking our statements sir?" she asked once Gates was sitting, looking at them.

"I was here when Bracken and his men arrived at the cabin, so I've seen the footage," Gates said. "We attempted to contact the local PD, but turns out you'd already done so. But at the same time, there was a fire at a store next to the station, which drained their resources so it took them longer to get to you. I was just checking on a picture they sent me from the security footage there," she told them, handing Beckett a photograph. "As you can see it's the man you're saying Gillette was calling Lawrence. Looking into him, he was a friend of Gillette's, from their time at Sussex."

"Is that why you wanted to talk to us?" Castle asked, looking at his fiancée but seeing no reaction on her face.

"No, I'd like to explain the lack of help you received," Gates replied. "Now though, I'd like you to tell me everything that happened, from the point when the electricity was cut off to you leaving the property."

Sharing a look with Castle, Beckett began with her being lured outside by the group of men, before being taken down to the river. When she got to the point where she'd been going to the back of the cabin, Castle quickly told what had happened to him, and they continued together up until the point she had gone upstairs to look for Carlotta and Isabella.

"So she managed to shoot him," Gates commented.

"She did, I think Gillette thought the knife would be enough and he forgot about the gun on his hip," Beckett said, her voice a little slow in its tone. She ignored the look she could see her fiancé giving her out of the corner of her eye and said, "We think she left the office downstairs after she realized she was alone. When she saw Castle in the back with Bracken and Gillette, she panicked and sacrificed herself for her child, because she knew the best thing was to hide the baby. And even as she was bleeding from the cut to her neck… she protected Isabella."

"There will be a DNA test done on Bracken and Isabella," Gates said. "Though there's little doubt he's the father with that security footage from the hotel."

"Does the media know the details about why Bracken was shot?" Castle then asked.

"All they know is that he was shot at a cabin outside the city, and that a member of Homicide was involved," Gates said. "That's all they'll know until Ryan and Esposito give me that evidence they gathered. I would suggest that you keep a low profile right now Beckett."

"I had that in mind already," she said quickly.

"And I would tell you the same Mr. Castle, but I would assume that would be difficult for you?" Gates said.

"No, I don't have anything at the moment that would have me speaking with the media," Castle said. "I might take the same advice."

"I've instructed Esposito and Ryan to take your statements as more of a formality, but after this Beckett, this case is theirs," Gates said.

"Ryan let me know," she replied with a slight nod. "But, I need to ask, what about IA?"

"I haven't heard anything from them concerning what happened tonight, but I'll keep you up to date on anything I do hear," Gates said. "In the mean time, please remain here until your partners return to the station."

Since that was a dismissal, Beckett stood up and left with Castle following her to her desk. She wasn't surprised to see the paperwork for the case there; thanking Esposito and Ryan for having it ready for her. She looked at Castle and said, "You can go ahead and get some sleep while we wait."

"I'll get some coffee," he replied. "For you, you look like you could use some."

"Badly," Beckett said, a smile flashing across her face briefly. She watched him go to the break room before forcing her attention to the files she had. While she opened the first one, she couldn't stop her gaze from turning up to her picture of Julia. She glanced at her watch and let out a quiet sigh as it was barely past dawn by then, and she picked up a pen, letting the familiarity of the spaces on the form take her thoughts away from her daughter while the ink moved into letters and numbers as she began the first steps to finish hers and Castle's involvement with Senator Bracken.

* * *

His head on his crossed arms on the table in the middle of the break room, Castle nearly jumped when he felt a familiar brush of fingertips to the back of his neck; along the edge of his hair. He straightened up and looked around saying, "Sure you should… oh, we're alone."

"Believe me, I wouldn't have done that if we weren't," Beckett commented, sitting next to him. "Espo and Ryan are almost back, they're making a quick stop at the morgue, but they let me know we've got confirmation that Thornton was shot by Gordon."  
"Don't they have wives?" Castle asked.

"Thornton has a son," Beckett said, nodding. "Gordon's wife; you met her at the picnic last year; she's six months with their first child."

"Is that why he was in debt?" Castle asked, grimacing slightly at that news.

"Partially, they just got a new apartment and the cost of it took out almost all their money," Beckett said. When her fiancé looked at her questioningly she said, "I looked into their financials just now."

"Paperwork's finished?" Castle asked. He wasn't surprised when she didn't answer, instead set the papers he needed to sign in front of him, and he took the pen she gave him, signing each space as fast he could.

"So we're done, except for our statements," Beckett said.

"I have to wonder why they didn't take them at the cabin," Castle said. "We could have changed out stories."

"The video evidence would make us really stupid if we did that," Beckett said with a slight smile.

"How are you?" Castle murmured, reaching to where her hand was resting on her thigh. "And I mean physically."

"Tired, and worried how Julia's going to react when she sees us," Beckett said, motioning to her face with her hand after he'd let go of it. "What about you?" she asked him, looking at his head where there was the scabbed abrasion from the butt of Gillette's gun that he'd been struck with.

"Okay, I took some aspirin, the headache is tolerable now," Castle assured her. "Especially with that cat nap I got just now. Why don't you sleep too?"

Shaking her head Beckett said, "I don't want to think about sleeping until this is finished and I can go."

"Oh, does that mean your vacation starts early?" Castle inquired.

"It does, we should talk about next week," Beckett said. "But, maybe wait until we're somewhere more-"

"Private," they said at the same time. When she nodded, Castle squeezed her arm and said, "When we have Julia with us we will. And since we can look forward to the future… to a degree, I'm thinking about maybe; if you're okay with it; focusing on looking for a home more than we have been already."  
"I'd love to," Beckett said when he looked over her shoulder then. "They're here?" she asked. At his slight nod to her, she walked out of the room with Castle following her saying, "You… guys?" stopping when she saw their expressions.

"No, it's just, Perlmutter told us that Bracken was the father, the blood type of Isabella correlates with her mother and him," Ryan said. "It's…"

"Disgusting," Esposito finished. "Though we knew what was happening already."  
"Yeah, it's hard to hear the confirmation of what you knew was true when you were hoping in the back of your mind it was just a story," Castle said. "You guys were hoping it was somehow Hague weren't you?"

"So was I," Beckett said, not surprised when Castle nodded his head in agreement with her. "Has anyone called Bracken's widow?" she asked.

"I did, she was in shock so much so I thought we'd have to go to DC to check on her," Ryan said. "Yeah, she's down there, Bracken left her, telling her he was going to sail their yacht down to Chesapeake Bay to pick her up for their vacation, but he was lying."

"And she asked why Bracken would care about your protection detail," Esposito said. "So Ryan had to tell her about Ms. Spencer who she remembered, and asked right out if her husband had assaulted her."

"My silence was enough of an answer, and she then asked if there was a child out of that and I told her about Isabella," Ryan finished.

"She doesn't want custody of the baby does she?" Castle asked.

"No, but she asked several times through the rest of my questioning of her if the baby was alright," Ryan commented.

"Once you check her financials and can clear her, you need ask her about her husband in the past month, ask about Sutcliff and the presidential run," Beckett said. "So you can close your case."

"Alright, we'd talk to you together, but Gates would want this done by the book," Ryan said. "Beckett?"

Watching as Esposito followed her fiancé into the other interview room, Beckett caught his eye, but all they did was share a glance before she turned her attention to the armchair where she usually sat to talk to someone, not the other way around. Letting out a heavy sigh she then said, "Do I have to go over this a second time?" as Ryan sat across from her.

"I'll let you know what I have so far," the detective said. "Fill in what I'm missing okay?"

Nodding, Beckett listened to what Ryan had on his notepad, speaking every so often to correct him or add something. It took a longer time than she'd expected for them to finish, and by the time she left the room she couldn't see any sign of her fiancé as Esposito was at his desk and the chair next to hers was empty. "Castle's story was a short one?" she said as she was about to sit down. "Surprising, you figured he would have embellished the part where he was facing Bracken and the others alone."

"He seemed pretty tired and wasn't really descriptive; made me worried he was hurt more than the EMT said. But Castle told me he just wanted to go home," Esposito said. "So he's done."

Beckett was about to sit down at her desk; wishing she could do the same; when she looked up to see Lieutenant Serrano stepping out of the elevator. She met his gaze before Gates got her attention, and she stood up, not seeing that Ryan and Esposito were watching her as she walked into the captain's office. She closed the door after herself, her eyes on Serrano as she waited to hear what he had come to say, feeling oddly calm before he began to talk.

* * *

" _We'll bring you more on this story as it devel_ -" the news anchor was saying before the screen went blank.

Breathing out heavily, Castle left his office and went to the door, peering out into the hallway before he paused and listened for the footsteps of his fiancée. But when there was only a glaring silence, he gave up and went back inside, starting his lap around the living room. He had to wonder how many times he'd done that since he'd gotten out of bed two hours earlier. He had attempted to sleep once he'd gotten back to the loft, but as eight rolled around and he'd heard his mother and then Alexis leave, he finally got up, knowing he wasn't going to get the quiet he needed inside his mind until Beckett returned. He stood at the windows, looking up absently at the sky as he recalled the news reports about Bracken's murder.

Luckily there was little in the way of specific information from the media, and what Castle was most grateful for, was the fact that Beckett's name was nowhere to be heard. He finally couldn't take the frustration that had been building up in him after so long when she should have come home, and he nearly started to jog to his phone on the kitchen table. But before he get too far past the couch he heard the door opening, and he stopped abruptly; hoping it was his fiancée and not his mother or Alexis since they hadn't seen him since the evening before.

Walking inside, Beckett paused for a moment when she saw Castle standing, staring at her and she said, "That bad?" She was startled when he walked around the couch and table, drawing her into his arms just as she let her bag fall carefully to the floor since her weapons were in there. She hugged him back just as tightly, pressing her cheek to his as she closed her eyes, her exhaustion a heavy wave that didn't seem to want to stop as she leaned against him.

"Everything set?" Castle eventually asked when he could pull himself away enough to look at her. But before she could answer he was kissing her, deeply, as she held onto him. He followed that kiss with two more, and then finally forced himself to pull away to let her reply.

"Come here," Beckett said, picking up her bag as she stepped away from him. Before she could move, her fiancé grabbed the handle and secured it in the closet, after which she led him to the couch. "Your mom and Alexis?" she asked once they were sitting.

"They went out. Where I don't know, but somewhere," Castle said simply. He then took her hand and entwined their fingers together tightly as he waited for her to begin.

"I took a look at all the evidence Esposito and Ryan gave to Gates not too long ago," Beckett commented as she took off her necklace. She handed her engagement ring to her fiancé and let him put it on her finger as she looked on. "So Ortega was Johnny, we got confirmation on that by matching up the security footage from the hospital; even with that wig he was wearing, it was him. The reason he had the Galway tattoo was because Bracken had heard about them from a friend in the DA's office, and decided to use them for his own plans."

"Do you think Bracken was aware it would become your case? Or did he-" Castle began to say.

"Make sure I got the case," Beckett finished with him. She nodded and said, "It's likely he wanted me to get the case. With the second victim, we're guessing that he wasn't aware Charlton had no idea who the baby's father was; he either decided to kill him to make sure he never found out and made that information public, or he just wanted him dead so there would be no family, we don't know."

"Who killed him?" Castle asked.

"Lawrence, whose full name is Lawrence Stewart," Beckett said. "He wasn't at Sussex, but he knew Gillette from when they were kids. And Lawrence was suspected of some murders in the Bronx, but never convicted."

"Should have been," Castle muttered.

Cupping his cheek for a moment at that, Beckett then said, "Gillette was our Judge Nelson and he was only there to see where we were in the case. And Bracken was probably hoping to distract us with the real judge."

"What about the kidnap attempt at the safe house? How did they know about the safe house? Was it Gordon?" Castle asked.

"It was Gordon, and the attempt was done because they thought Isles and Ritter would be easy to overpower," Beckett said. "And since they were in the alley in the back, Gillette and Ortega didn't know where we were. So in the end it was an attempt."

"And Lawrence was brought in after that?" Castle said.

"He was. Ryan was able to find another account that Bracken had; under the name of his aide in his DC office; which was where Lawrence got his first payment from," Beckett replied. "And we're thinking that Gordon shot him; mistakenly or deliberately… that we're not sure of."

Castle sighed deeply and said, "Were they able to connect Bracken's money to everyone?"

"They were," Beckett said with a nod. "And Perlmutter called with the results of the preliminary DNA test; Bracken is in fact the father."

"What will happen to his body?" Castle said after hesitating for a moment.

"His wife refuses to take it to Arlington," Beckett said. At her fiancé's surprised expression she quickly explained, "He was in the Navy for about three years after college."

"Which would explain why he was able to beat the hell out of me," Castle muttered, touching his nose carefully.

"But she's going to bury him at the church where his parents were married; if they let her do that," Beckett said. "She came to the station," she then added.

"Did you speak with her?" Castle said, watching her.

"No, I stayed away from her, I really couldn't talk to her," Beckett replied. "Ryan did instead, and he and Espo managed to look into her financials; there was nothing suspicious. Plus, she had filed for divorce without Bracken knowing last week, so we're not seeing any motive she would have in trying to get rid of Isabella and Carlotta."

"And Carlotta?" Castle asked gently.

"Her sister came in, and that's partially why I was later getting back here," Beckett said, squeezing his hand that had taken hers again. "I spoke with her, and she's going to bury Carlotta in Yonkers where they grew up. And according to her sister's will, Madeline Spencer and her husband are going to get custody of Isabella."

"Will they be good parents?" Castle said immediately after she'd finished.

"They will, they left after talking to me for Child Services so they can get her," Beckett replied. "They've invited us to the funeral on Monday; Gates insisted everyone from the station will go. As well as to Thornton's funeral which his wife is going to have the same day, according to LT, you know he and Thornton were friends."

Nodding at that, Castle then asked, "What was the other reason you were later?"

Beckett looked at him and said, "Lieutenant Serrano came to speak to me, and Wilder's siblings have dropped the threat of the lawsuit and the investigation is being closed as we speak."

"What?" Castle asked, completely shocked. "Just… Bracken?" he asked as he realized then why they had.

"He offered to help pay for legal fees for the suit, and he let spill to them that I wasn't exactly a stable detective," Beckett replied. "But when they heard that he was responsible for Carlotta being killed, they urged IA to discontinue the investigation into me. And since what they've found points to Wilder killing herself…"

"Please tell me Child Services contacted you next," Castle then said.

"They called me, and they're closing their investigation as well," Beckett answered. "They think the letters accusing me of abusing Julia came from Bracken or someone in his circle as they were postmarked DC."

"So they're not going to look into you anymore," Castle stated.

"She's still our daughter," Beckett replied. She smiled; not surprised when Castle suddenly pulled her to him and embraced her tightly. She wrapped her arms around his neck, pressing her cheek to his and feeling his relief that she shared in the way he held her.

Pulling back, Castle allowed himself a single kiss to her lips that lasted quickly before he said, "So you're set?"

"I am, but if you want to go to the Hamptons any sooner, it's going to have to wait for Tuesday," Beckett said.

"That'll be fine, but why don't we get some sleep? I'm exhausted, and you looked like you are too," Castle suggested. When his fiancée nodded, he reluctantly let her go before taking her hand and going into his bedroom. He closed the door as she went to change, but didn't lock it as he hurried to change out of his clothes as Beckett was doing. He finished before she did, and watched her finish by pulling on her NYPD shirt saying, "What do we tell her when she sees us?" as she walked over to him.

"I really don't know," Beckett said, frowning as she sat next to him on the edge of the bed. "How could we explain why we both have bruises? And I have cuts, all over," she said, sighing at the end. "We should just say we got into some difficulties at work, and hope she doesn't get so scared she ends up having nightmares." She and Castle were quiet then, and she finally shook her head as she stood up saying, "I'm going to call my dad and have him bring-"

Getting up, Castle went to her quickly and took her phone saying, "Let her have a little more time to be a kid, and not worry about her parents okay? In the meantime, you and I need to rest. It was a long night."

Setting her phone on the nightstand once he'd handed it to her, Beckett followed him onto the bed, going over to his side to rest her cheek on his shoulder. She was going to say something, but it was lost as the fatigue she'd been able to keep at bay up until then finally took over, and she was asleep, unaware that Castle had joined her almost at the same time, holding her loosely as he slept.

* * *

"Well, Beckett's here," Alexis said, looking in the closet and seeing her overnight bag on the top shelf.

"He can't still be sleeping," Martha said, shaking her head.

"Think of how long they were-" Alexis began to say.

"Well hello kiddo," Martha said quickly when she saw Julia running down the hallway. "Get everything from your grandfather's?"

"Her bag is right here, is Katie back?" Jim asked.

"Yeah, I wanna show her what I got at the museum," Julia said, sounding a little anxious.

"I think she and Castle are still asleep," Martha said. She was going to say more, when Julia dropped her bag from the Met, and opened the door to Castle's room before taking care of the second and slipping inside.

The room was slightly dim since all the blinds were closed, but Julia could see enough to go around to her mother's side of the bed, seeing she was facing towards the side of the bed. She got close and then suddenly let out a horrified cry before saying, "Mommy!"

"Julia," Beckett said, jerking awake as Castle did the same next to her. It took her a moment, but she remembered the way her face looked, and wasn't surprised when the little girl climbed up on the bed and then threw her arms around her tightly. "Shh, it's okay sweetie, we're okay," she said as Julia sobbed once.

"She's right sweetheart," Castle said, wincing when Julia gasped at the bruising around his nose. "I know, it looks really bad, but we're more than okay."

"But, doesn't it hurt?" Julia said, sniffing to try and stop her tears.

"Little bit," Castle said. "This much," he said, making his voice higher pitched as he squeezed his thumb and index finger close together. "Actually, I feel a lot better now we're home, I must say."

"Thank you Ed Grimley," Beckett said, shaking her head. She smiled when he kissed the back of her head quickly at that, and then looked down at their daughter. "Sweetie, I love you so much," she said. She gathered the little girl into her arms, pleased when she responded immediately, snuggling close to her. "You know you're the most important thing to me right?" she whispered impulsively to her, suddenly wanting to tell her daughter that so she would know it with certainty.

"And Castle too?" Julia asked after she had nodded in response to her mother's question.

"And him too," Beckett said with a smile. "Everyone in our family, but for me, you and Castle especially."

"Me too," Julia said, a slight blush on her cheeks as Castle ran his hand over the back of her head. She climbed over her mother to sit in between them and hugged them around their necks at the same time, kissing their cheeks. "And us?" she asked him.

"You are very important, and so are Alexis and your gram. Speaking of which, are they out there waiting for us?" Castle asked.

"No, we're right here," Alexis said from the doorway. "Are you sure you're okay?" she said, her face blanching when she saw the state of her dad's face.

"Yep, I wouldn't lie. Sweetheart? Can you go out with everyone else while your mom and I change?" Castle asked.

"We'll be right out," Beckett promised when Julia looked hesitant. She and her fiancé both shared a kiss with their daughter before she helped her get off the bed, and once they heard both the doors closing, she threw her arms around him tightly, kissing him deeply.

Holding her close, Castle was quick to respond as he had almost been able to guess what she'd wanted. He responded as long as he could, and when they parted he murmured, "We're definitely going to need to get married if we feel that strongly about each other."

Beckett didn't respond to that, only kissed his lips gently before getting up, pulling on his hand to help him off the bed. "Castle," she said warningly as he slid his arm around her waist as she was going to the dresser.

"One more," Castle murmured before he pressed kisses along her shoulder. He nearly smiled when she turned around, but he was distracted by the kiss he gave her, enjoying it thoroughly. Somehow he pulled himself away when he felt his lungs burning for air, but couldn't resist another hurried kiss before he tore himself away from her that time to get his clothes and a distraction from his fiancée.

Looking up as the door to her son's bedroom opened, Martha began to say, "Well good morning, or good…" before trailing off

"Mommy, you're bleeding!" Julia cried in horror, running over to Beckett as she and Castle stepped out into the living room.

"She's right," Castle said, hurrying back into his room. "Wait," he said when he'd come back out with a handkerchief in his hand, seeing her about to touch the blood trailing down her cheek.

"It was the branches in the water," Beckett murmured as she watched him wipe off the blood. "Stopped me from going any further, but they were pretty unforgiving doing that."

"Oh Mommy, are you sure you're kay?" Julia said, tears in her eyes as she hugged her mother once Castle had gotten the blood cleaned off her skin.

"I would imagine we don't look much better in daylight?" Castle asked.

"Even with that daylight fading?" Beckett added. She then picked Julia up and said gently, "We're okay sweetie, we promise, and I promise these bruises and cuts will go away, just give it some time."

"What if you bleed again," Julia whispered, running her finger along the skin under the cut that had reopened momentarily.

"It's a little cut, and a paramedic looked at us before we came home. Remember Wes's mother that came to your class and told you what paramedics do?" Beckett reminded her, kissing her cheek.

"Yeah, and they said you were kay? You too Castle?" Julia asked, reaching out to him.

"Clean bill of health," he replied. "My nose is going to be sore, but it'll go back to normal. Your mom too."

Julia sighed at that, and hugged her mother tightly, pressing her cheek to hers whispering, "Does that hurt?"

"It doesn't," Beckett assured her as she watched Castle lean over to kiss Julia's cheek.

Looking at him, Julia reached up and brushed her fingertips along the bruising along the edge of his nose, seeing him not even flinching in response. She smiled slightly and said, "I'm glad you are kay, you and Mommy."

"Me too," Castle said. "But I could use something to drink, tea would be good. Kate?"

"Actually, can you wait a second for the tea," Beckett said as he started to walk to the kitchen. As he'd done that, her father came over to her, and she remembered her need to tell him everything.

"I can make it. Julia, darling, want to help us?" Martha said.

Setting her daughter down, Beckett said to her father, "I need to talk to you Dad."

"About what?" Jim asked, a little surprised at how serious his daughter was.

"You can talk in my office," Castle said, having come back to them.

"Come on," Beckett said, looking at her father and fiancé. She led the way into the office, waiting for Castle to close the door, looking at him before he sat down next to her in his desk chair.

"What's wrong? Please don't tell me they're taking her away from you-" Jim started to say when he remembered the trouble his daughter was having with IA and Child Services.

"No, it doesn't have anything to do with that," Beckett said quickly, cutting him off. "It's about Mom."

"Do you think she's telling him about Bracken?" Alexis whispered to Martha, looking at the three in the office through the shelves.

"More than likely, I just hope this will be enough for her," Martha replied.

"What else can she do?" Alexis asked, not surprised when her grandmother only shook her head. "Really Gram, with Bracken dead, he can't hurt anyone else, and he got what he deserved in the end."

Looking at her granddaughter in surprise, Martha eventually nodded her head saying, "Yes, you're right, I suppose Beckett can take some comfort in the fact that they were able to keep Isabella safe."

Alexis frowned at that, remember her father calling her to warn her about what had happened at the cabin; and not to mention it to Beckett's dad; and realized the odd mood Beckett was in was likely because the baby's mother had been killed. She suddenly wanted to talk to her about that, but refrained, seeing the way her dad was looking at his fiancée, knowing then that he would be able to talk to Beckett about it himself as in the office she was grabbing her father's hands.

"So, he had your mother killed for money," Jim was saying, sounding stunned. "All to save himself… What about you? Did he try to kill you too?"

Looking at each other, Castle spoke for the first time then since they'd entered his office saying, "She was a threat to him, looking into the case as she did."

"But why hasn't he tried again in all this time since you've been shot?" Jim asked, squeezing his daughter's hands as if to keep her there.

"I told him I had the file that Montgomery mailed to Smith," Beckett said. "But all I had was a pieced together account number of where he'd stored the money he took from the kidnappings. But I threatened him with it, an attempt to keep me, you, and everyone I love safe. But with him possibly becoming a VP candidate…"

"He needed to clean house, and it wasn't just his illegitimate daughter and her mother that he assaulted that needed to be taken care of," Castle said, looking at his fiancée.

Glancing up at him, Beckett saw him nod his head slightly and then turning to her father told him, "He was trying to get me fired, and Julia taken from us."

"For what reason?" Jim asked, picking up on her use of the word trying.

"To break me," Beckett whispered. She bit her lower lip and shook her head continuing with, "But it didn't work, I was told by the Lieutenant looking into the Wilder case that her siblings dropped their threat of suing the PD. It turns out they were being urged to do so by Bracken. And he was likely the one sending letters to Child Services, alleging I was abusing Julia."

"And are they dropping their investigation too?" Jim asked. When his daughter nodded, he breathed out and said, "Your mother would be proud of you Katie, you know that right?" When she didn't say anything he quickly said, "You put everything into protecting that child. And I get the feeling that he was there to kill her himself, but you stopped him."

"She's lost her mother though," Beckett said.

"She did what any mother would do; what you would do, what your mother would have done if she needed to," Jim said, his tone growing intense. "She gave her life for her child."

Beckett opened her mouth as if to speak, but stopped, abruptly standing and going to the windows at the end of the office. She was staring blankly out, nearly falling back into Castle as he came up behind her to hold her. At the click of the lock she knew her father was leaving, so she turned in her fiancé's embrace saying, "Dad-"

Jim paused, and then walked over to her saying, "It's over, your mother would want you to let things happen from here. Eventually it'll be discovered that Bracken was a part of your mother's death, just let time take over now. You've done everything you could have." He then smiled slightly and hugged his daughter saying, "We have Julia to think of."

"We do," Beckett said, a smile turning up the corners of her lips. "Stay for dinner, please."

"I was already invited before I came here," Jim replied.

"My mom? Alexis?" Castle asked.

Shaking his head, Jim said, "Julia," before he left them.

Chuckling slightly as he wasn't surprised hearing that, Castle turned his attention to his fiancée, studying her for a moment before saying, "He's right you know."

"I know but, we should talk about this later," Beckett said, looking out of the open doorway.

Following her gaze, Castle smiled when he saw that Julia was holding a tote bag from the Met, bouncing from foot to foot as she watched them, nibbling her lower lip. "One second sweetheart," he told her.

"Why one-" Beckett started to say before Castle was taking her lips with his. She dimly heard Julia squeal before she was wrapping her arms around her fiancé's neck, holding him as tightly as they took their one second and dragged it out into several before finally parting, turning their attention to their daughter.

* * *

"Are you certain about this?" Martha was asking as she watched Beckett serving herself some food.

"I'm not so sure, your son was adamant about us including it on the list," she replied, watching him walk up to them.

"It's a great song…" Castle started to say, beginning to get himself some of the dumplings in the tray that had been delivered. He trailed off when he saw his fiancée's expression and sighing said, "Alright, alright, but those are some awesome lyrics."

"Well, you've managed to get your music list to three pages," Jim was saying at the table with Julia and Alexis. "But you mentioned a shorter reception?"

"Yes, where I'm taking Kate for the honeymoon I want us to spend as much time as possible. So I want to leave early to be able to spend at least some time that same day there," Castle said.

"Plus we would just like to be married," Beckett said.

"Are you voting-" Castle began to ask.

"He is," Beckett said, shaking her head at him as she nodded to Julia.

"So sweetheart, how does the list look?" Castle asked the little girl who was luckily eating some of her Chinese broccoli and didn't seem to be listening.

Looking up at everyone who was looking at her, Julia blushed and shrugged her shoulders before finishing her piece of broccoli. "It's good, but I wish we didn't have to take away songs."

"Well, I think we can leave the list as it is," Castle said, looking at his fiancée. "We could have music playing while we eat."

"We could, but it'd have to be on low," Beckett said as Julia seemed to perk up at that idea.

"Oh, please, please, please?" the little girl begged.

"I don't blame her," Alexis said, as they all laughed at the expression on her face. "These are some very romantic songs, even though they're not the best ones to dance to."

"Okay, let's look at the list again, and see what we have and we'll decide then," Beckett said with a smile. "But we'll look at it later," she said quickly as Julia started to reach for the papers. "Eat sweetie, you didn't even touch your _bao_ yet."

The phone rang, and Castle groaned, going to his office saying, "It's the media again I bet. I'm surprised they'd think I'd answer their calls." He checked the caller ID and nodded saying, "No clue who that is."

"So Richard, Kate," Martha was saying, sharing a look with her granddaughters. When they nodded she said, "Now that this whole secret about the new place is out, we think you should broaden your search slightly."

"You mean look for a home outside the city?" Beckett asked.

"No, no, use the internet," Martha corrected. "It would be easier to search there. Or are you two a little unsure about getting a home of your own together? I can't understand why, you and Julia are practically living here Kate."

"I guess we could look," Castle said, looking at his fiancée as he spoke since they'd spoken of looking more already.

"Could? I think you can Dad," Alexis said. "Gram and I have dish duty today."

"Really?" Castle said.

"Do I have to help? Or can I look with Mommy and Castle?" Julia asked her sister.

"I'll help," Jim said, getting their attention. "Since you should look with them Alexis, I believe Julia said you were going to move in with them."

"Sorry Dad, but things have been…" Beckett said slowly.

"I know, but Julia got me up to speed," Jim replied before smiling. "And she also asked about getting a five bedroom apartment so I could move in."

"Well, the fifth bedroom is now more for when you or any guest wants to stay over for any reason," Castle said, Beckett nodding in agreement with him. "So I guess we're going cyber house hunting."

"Yay," Julia said, clapping her hands. She smiled as her mother laughed softly, and she suddenly grew serious, pushing her plate over to her before climbing down from her chair.

"Do you want more?" Beckett asked since the plate was empty. When Julia nodded, she went over to the kitchen with her and helped her grab a few more items before they sat back down, not surprised when hers and Castle's daughter started to climb up on her lap.

"So," Martha said. "What will we do until Thursday?"

"Kate and I need to talk about that," Castle said. "But we need to go to some… we'll be busy on Monday. Someone needs to watch Julia."

"Do you have to work?" Julia inquired, finishing a dumpling.

"Not really, it's just something we need to do with the Precinct," Beckett said. She started to speak and then hesitated saying, "I'll have to wear my uniform."

"Can I see you put it on?" Julia asked, not asking to go as she guessed whatever her mother was going to wear her uniform for was for something kids weren't able to see.

"You can," Beckett said. "So who-"

"I'll watch her," Alexis said quickly. "And Padma wants to have my first lesson that day, so we'll go, have lunch and after she invited me to swim in the pool in her building, I'm sure she'll be fine with Julia coming along."

"Ooh! Please?" Julia asked, looking up at her mother and then over at Castle.

"Yes, as long as Padma says it's fine," Beckett said, her fiancé nodding as Julia looked to check with him.

"I can call her right now," Alexis said. "Come on Jules, let's see what she says."

When the two were in the office, Jim leaned over and asked, "Are you two going to the funeral for Officer Thornton?"

Nodding Beckett then explained, "After that Homicide is going over to Carlotta's funeral, so we'll be able to see Isabella. But I don't need her to know, though…" she started to say before trailing off.

At that moment, Julia ran out of the office with a short squeal crying, "She said it's kay Mommy, Castle!"

"Great, so now," Castle began to say as he stood. Before he could reach for his plate, the little girl was tugging on his hand. "Now what?"

"We're finished, now we can look for a new home!" Julia cried eagerly.

"Wow, Kate?" Castle said at their daughter's exuberance.

"Alright, but we should help your grandfather-" Beckett started to say, standing up.

"Go and look, but look here so we can listen in," Martha said, urging them over to the couch.

Taking his laptop that Alexis had brought from his office, Castle sat with Beckett leaning against him to his right, and their daughter on Alexis' lap to his left. "Five bedroom condos; since that's what they are with that many rooms," he said, more for Julia's sake. "Okay, let's try this first site. We can search by neighborhood," he told his fiancée. "Any place in particular you want to look at."

"I… well why did you bother asking if you know already?" Beckett said teasing him by pretending to sound mad as he immediately put in for the Upper West Side and added 5 bedrooms to the search filter. She leaned her head on his shoulder as he scrolled through the buildings and she pointed to the fourth result. "Riverside West is supposed to be really nice."

"Alright, let's take a look," Castle said, clicking on the link. He and Beckett read the description for the building and looked at the very bottom of the page, seeing what came with it and the amenities. "Should we try the pictures now?"

"I think so," Alexis said, laughing slightly as Julia was nodding her head up and down rapidly.

"It's a little expensive though," Beckett said in a low voice to him, seeing what the price a five bedroom apartment started at as he went up to the pictures.

"If we look at it we'll talk to the realtor about rent," Castle said. "For now, let's see if we like the sample of it."

Studying the pictures, Julia looked at her sister and bit her lower lip as they turned to Castle and Beckett, waiting for them to close the pop up. "Do you like it Mommy?" she asked a little impatiently when they were quiet.

"I think it's amazing," Castle said, watching his fiancée to see her reaction.

"Call," Beckett said simply. She smiled when Julia breathed out in relief and said, "You like it too?"

"It's amazing, I can only imagine the views the bedrooms have if the living room has a river view," Alexis said.

"It's pretty, and at night!" Julia cried. "Martha, you should see, 'cause you're gonna have a room too."

"I'll look at it in a little bit Julia," she called from the kitchen as she and Jim were finished washing up.

"Alright, cross your fingers they haven't sold all the apartments and we can get a showing soon," Castle said.

Beckett smiled as Alexis crossed her fingers, and helped Julia do the same as she seemed frozen on her lap. She turned her attention to Castle, and listened to his conversation with the realtor for the building.

"Yes, I'm wondering if I might schedule a showing for my friend, she's looking for a five bedroom apartment in your building," Castle said. "You have some available? Great, any with river views? Okay, when's the soonest she can go… Sunday morning you're having an open house." He looked at his fiancée and when she nodded he said, "That would be fine… okay, ten is fine, thank you, bye." Hanging up his phone he said, "Looks like we're going to be looking at a home."

Smiling at that, Beckett kissed him gently on the lips and when they pulled apart said, "We've done that before."

"One we haven't seen before," Castle said before he realized Alexis was taking his laptop out of his hands. "Oh… yeah, show them," he said. "Jim, you're not getting a room exactly, but hopefully you'll like the apartment so you should take a look at it as well."

Beckett glanced over the back of the couch, smiling as she watched Julia and Alexis pointing out some of the pictures to her dad and Martha. She sat back down and said, "I feel a little surreal with the thought of us looking for a house."

"Maybe because we've done the domestic stuff already, it's a shock to go backwards in finding a house," Castle suggested.

"Is there really a set order these days?" Beckett asked with a small smile at the way he'd worded that.

"No, but I'm actually eager to go look," Castle said. "Hopefully you are too."

"I am, but about Sunday-" Beckett said. But before she could continue, the others were coming around the couch to sit with them and she had to ask her dad and Castle's mother, "What do you think?"

"What they show of it is very nice, but I think in the end it matters more if you two like it," Martha said simply, sitting on an armchair with Julia on her lap. "You'll have to tell us how it is on Sunday."

"We will," Beckett said. "So, are we practicing for the beach? Sitting around the bonfire?"

"Looks like it, anyone want some hot chocolate?" Castle asked, squeezing his fiancée's arm.

"I do! Can we play with cards?" Julia begged then.

"Go ahead and start guys," Beckett said, following Castle into the kitchen. She took the aspirin that he handed her and took the glass of water he poured before taking the medicine. "I'm hoping this doesn't last into next week," she said softly to him as the others were debating between what game they could play.

"We'll have to see," Castle said simply, touching his nose and wincing slightly. "For now, we should play. And none of us has work or school, so we could stay up… No?" he asked as Beckett was giving him a look.

"She goes to bed at the same time, and good thing she didn't hear you say that," she replied, shaking her head though she began to smile.

"I'll make a playlist on my computer of the list we have here," Alexis was saying when her dad and Beckett joined them at the table, passing out mugs of hot chocolate. "And save it on a USB stick to give you to play, see what you think."

"Can't we listen to music now?" Julia pleaded. " _Por favor_?"

"Are you asking your grandfather?" Castle asked as Alexis left to set some to play.

Giggling, Julia shook her head and then got down from her chair to stand next to him, pursing her lips. When he'd leaned over to share a kiss with him, she went to her mother next, then Alexis and Martha before ending with Jim, sharing a kiss with them all. She smiled as her grandfather whispered something to her and gave her another kiss before she hugged him around the neck. "He said that kiss was from Grandmama," she told everyone as she sat back down at the table.

Reaching to his fiancée, Castle squeezed her hand gently before whispering to her, "We do need to talk, about a lot, but later when she's in bed."

Beckett nodded simply in response, and kissed him quickly before they watched Martha deal out the UNO cards. She watched Julia look at her cards, her forehead furrowed in thought, and she smiled slightly, hoping her daughter knew how serious she'd been when she'd told her how much she meant to her. She squeezed her fiancé's hand gently, knowing she needed to say the same to him, not wanting him to go through their lives together without knowing. But for the moment, she focused her attention on the game, loving the laughter coming out of their daughter as she playful mimicked him, slamming down cards into the holder.

* * *

Yawning widely, Julia watched her mother come inside the room and when she was close enough, reached out to touch around some of the cuts on her cheek before asking, "Are you happy Mommy? Kay too?"

"Very much so sweetie, now that we're home," Beckett assured her, taking her little hands and kissing them both. "Just tired still from staying up all night."  
"Isn't it fun to stay up," Julia said, crinkling her nose slightly. "When you're grown up and don't fall asleep fast?"

"It depends on what you do to stay awake," Castle said, coming into the room with Alexis, Martha and Jim who'd stayed when his granddaughter had begged him to say goodnight to her when she was put to bed. "But trust me when I say we don't do it that often."

Glancing at her fiancé; since that wasn't exactly true; Beckett said, "But since you're tired yourself sweetie, you need to get to bed. So say goodnight to everyone."

"Me first honey, so I can head back home," Jim said, going to the bed. He and his granddaughter shared a kiss and he pressed his lips to the top of her head saying, "I love you so much Julia, it was a lot of fun today."

Nodding in agreement, the little girl replied, "I love you too Grandpapa. Can't you move in with us?"

"I'll be over to visit as often as I can, I promise," Jim replied, kissing her forehead before he stepped aside for Martha.

"Quite a goodnight you're getting," she said to her granddaughter. "Is that why you wanted us all to come up?"

"Yeah, 'cause I like having a big family," Julia said, hugging her around the neck tightly.

"Well we adore you darling, and I don't think I will ever get tired of saying goodnight to you," Martha said after they had shared a kiss. "But, let me add one more thing now because it's needed to be said for a long time. I love you Julia, very, very much."

Blushing, Julia hugged her again, kissing her cheek saying, "You wanted to say that?"

"I did, now, when you say those words back to me, I have only one request," Martha said. When the little girl looked at her questioningly she continued saying, "Say that after you've told your father that."

"She'll say it when she's ready Gram," Alexis said, going over then as her sister's cheeks looked like they were on fire. She hugged Julia tightly and said, "But I love you too, though I don't care if you say it back to me, I know already."

Smiling, the little girl shared a kiss with her sister before she looked at Castle coming up to her and she squealed when he scooped her up, sitting on the edge of the bed. She went to her mother next to him, wrapping her arms around her neck and asking him, "Are you happy and kay like Mommy is?"

"A lot, but like your mom said, a little tired and sore, remind me not to sneeze for a very long time," Castle said, making a funny face as she giggled. He knelt down after Beckett had set her under the covers, and leaning over shared a kiss with her saying, "I love you Julia, and I'm happy too; that we're all home."

Nodding, Julia watched him and her mother switch places before she was hugging her mother. "Mommy? Can I ask something?" she then said, sounding hesitant.

"Go ahead," Beckett replied, looking down at her.

"Is Isabella okay? You said you and Castle were helping her mommy with her," Julia asked.

Sharing a glance with Castle; as they'd discussed briefly what they'd do if she asked; Beckett took a slightly deep breath while trying not to be obvious about it and told her, "She's doing okay."

"Oh good, I thought she would 'cause you and Castle helped. I love you Mommy," Julia said with a slight smile before saying the latter seriously.

"I love you so much sweetie," Beckett said in slight relief, kissing her forehead as she had thought she and Castle would have explain about what happened to Carlotta. But she and her fiancé had agreed that unless their daughter asked outright, they wouldn't mention the woman had been killed; the little girl didn't need to know that and start having nightmares. She smiled as Julia pursed her lips, and she leaned down, sharing a kiss with her before saying, "We'll go out to lunch and in the evening if it's hot tomorrow, we'll head to the park."

"All of us?" Julia asked hesitantly. When Jim, Martha and Alexis all said yes at nearly the same time she giggled saying, "I can't wait."

"Neither can we," Castle assured her.

"Sweet dreams Julia," Beckett murmured, tucking her in before she stroked the little girl's forehead. It took little time for Julia to fall asleep then, and she and Castle left with the others, pausing in the doorway to watch her before they headed downstairs. "Thank you for watching her Dad," she said as she followed him to the door.

"It's never a problem, and I might have to change my mind on watching Julia at your new place," Jim said, smiling as he put on his jacket. "It'll give you two a chance to travel alone together if I can stay with her at your home."

"We'll see," Beckett said, shaking her head though she had a small smile on her face. She hugged him after he'd shaken Castle's hand; knowing there was an unspoken thank you for going to the cabin with her in that; and said, "I hope you'll be okay."

"I will," Jim assured her. "Will you?"

Beckett nodded once to that, and then watched her father leave, feeling Castle's arm come around her shoulder. When he was out of sight, she turned to her fiancée and said, "I need some fresh air."

"Me too," Castle said. "But-"

"We're heading to bed anyways, so go outside, relax and then get some sleep," Martha said.

"Do we look like we could use it?" Beckett asked.

"A little," Alexis replied.

"Goodnight then," Beckett said before she stepped out of the apartment.

"She'll be okay Dad," Alexis said as she went to him and hugged him tightly.

"I know, just a shock how this all ended, but we're trying to keep going," Castle said, hugging her back. "Goodnight you two."

"Goodnight Richard, she-" Martha started to say before he stepped over to the closet. "I taught you well," she commented as he had pulled out a jacket that was his fiancée's.

"It is chilly tonight," Castle said with a shrug. "Night." And with that he left, going up to the roof and to the bench where he and Beckett had sat when they'd made _paella_ for the first time. He watched her as he approached her, putting the jacket around her shoulders.

"Thanks," she said, a little startled at his first touch. "So, I guess we should talk, I am still tired, I wasn't kidding."

"Neither was I," Castle said. He was about to speak when Beckett suddenly took his hands, looking at him seriously.

"I love you," Beckett said, looking into his eyes. "And you know you mean as much to me as Julia does."

"We're in agreement then," Castle said. He looked down at their joined hands, at her ring, before looking back at her. "I thought you were going to be killed."

"And that's why I'm glad you told me you loved me," Beckett said. "Before I ran out. Thank you for not following me."  
"I couldn't," Castle said, shaking his head. "But you can't feel guilty about Carlotta."

"No I can't," Beckett said. At her fiancé's obvious surprise she said, fighting the tears burning the backs of her eyes, "What my dad said was true, she was fighting for her child, and while she was looking for us to protect her and Isabella, in the end we were all trying to protect the baby, which was what she wanted. I don't think she would have changed anything, as long as Isabella ended up coming out of it alive." Seeing Castle's expression she asked, "What is it?"

"She said that to me before you came to the hotel last night," he replied. "She said that nothing mattered but Isabella. So she was ready to die for her daughter if need be… that's what upset you when your dad said that earlier," Castle finished in realization.

"I always thought as a parent you'd think that, but never actually have to go through it," Beckett replied, shaking her head. "And seeing Carlotta there in front of the door, the gun in her hand… that would be me, for our daughter."

"Same for me with Julia and Alexis, it's hard to see that though," Castle said, nodding as he pulled her to him. "It makes it real and it's hard to imagine you not being there for your child. But we're here for Julia, Kate, and we'll continue to be here. You to be the level headed mom and me to be the incredibly goofy dad… who's also ruggedly handsome," he said, pleased at her short laugh at how he'd finished that. He kissed her temple and murmured, "But we should look at the positive."

"Accentuate the positive?" Beckett teased him gently.

"Yeah, not sure why Julia wanted that song on our list; though it is a good one," Castle said. "But we have her, we have each other, and we might have a house; our house."

"And we have a future," Beckett said with a smile. "Which I thought was so corny, but your mind tends to think of that when you survive something like we did; and when you're going to get married."

"When you're going to get married to the right person," Castle commented. When she looked at him in surprise he shrugged and then opened his mouth to speak before he paused. She urged him to continue, and he said, "I'm just wondering about the investigation into you, how far would you have gone to keep Julia?"

"Quit my job," Beckett said before he'd even finished. She wasn't surprised that he wasn't shocked, and said, "My mother would have done the same, I was more important than her career, and she told me that too when I was writing my paper for my psychology class I took in my second semester of senior year. It was about nature versus nurture, and I was studying the behavior in animals about protecting the young and if that correlated in humans. She said she could be my example because she was never going to let anything happen to me. Even though I was an adult by then." She studied her fiancé and asked, "Would you have been okay with that? Nikki Heat out of a job?"

"Can't do that anymore Kate, Nikki stopped being an extension of you a long, long time ago," Castle said, shaking his head. "I will follow you, wherever you go, whatever you decide, just as long as I can be your husband and you become my wife, I don't care what happens."

"You're… you're practicing your toast for the reception already," Beckett said, stammering at first as she was touched by that since she could tell he was serious.

"I'll write something way better, I just made that up right now," Castle said. "But you don't have to worry about your job, all that is- poof- gone," he said, making a gesture with his hand.

"Really should have met my grandfather, he would have had you work crowd distractions with him during his tricks," Beckett said, smiling. She let go of his hand that was still holding her, and wrapped her arms around him as she told him, "I need to visit her."

"Sunday?" Castle guessed. He felt her nod and said, "I thought so, do you want me to watch Julia?"

"Yes, but I'd like you to take her to the playground nearby. I just want her close," Beckett said, sounding a little confused at herself.

"I don't blame you," Castle replied quickly, understanding why she wanted to do that. "We'll go," he promised. "But speaking of next week," he said, making her sit up to face him. "I was thinking about going to the Hamptons early, just us."

"Tuesday?" Beckett was able to guess as Castle quickly nodded his head in affirmation.

"Not because I'm trying to get you alone for… that, we'll decide if we want to make love over there when we're at the beach house," he said quickly. "I was thinking we could just rest, recuperate after this case." Castle then looked at her closely, wanting to see her reaction.

"That does sound nice," Beckett said, standing. "Will we take the Ferrari?"

"No, because I'd like to come back with Julia," Castle said, scrambling a little to get up from the bench. "And I can call tomorrow morning, get us a couple of horses at the Hampton Beach Stables, we can ride Wednesday morning, and… do whatever we think of."

"We'll tell everyone our plans tomorrow," Beckett said, giving him her agreement and feeling a thrill pass through her at the thought of getting to be alone with him, away from the city. "And I wouldn't be so quick to rule out doing that while we have your very, very large house all to ourselves."

Castle watched her walk to the door back inside, not so much shocked as feeling anticipation. But he tamped that down as she turned back to him; suddenly counting out in his mind how much longer there was to go until Tuesday. He went to her and wrapped his arms around her, kissing her deeply in his joy, feeling it easily in her response to him. He then took her left hand, entwining their fingers together so he could feel her ring as they went back in, knowing then that their eagerness for the trip was shared, as when he squeezed her hand, hers did the same immediately.

Beckett leaned against her fiancée as the elevator started down, and she murmured to him, "I want to see Julia, really quickly. But I don't want to wake up Alexis."

"I'll check," Castle said quickly. He texted his daughter, and since there was no responding automatic message she used when she was asleep, he said, "She's still awake." He led the way back to his loft and inside they switched; her leading him up to Alexis' room. He was a little startled when his daughter opened the door for them and he whispered, "She's asleep."

"Out like a light," Alexis murmured as she stepped aside for them.

Going to the bed, Beckett could see that she'd been right, Julia was fast asleep, her Stitch doll still tucked under her chin. She leaned down and took the risk of kissing the top of her head, and murmured that she loved her before she felt Castle's hand on her arm. Stepping out of the way, she went to the door, waiting as he did the same. "Night Alexis," she said as Castle went to his daughter and kissed her cheek.

"Night," Alexis replied as she watched her dad follow his fiancée out. She could tell that Beckett was feeling better, and was relieved since that had taken away some of the stress she'd been able to tell he was feeling. She went to the bed, turning off the lights before slipping under the covers, smiling as the little girl shifted around to face her, her face peaceful. She couldn't resist, kissing the top of Julia's head and she then laid down, the soft breathing of her sister breaking the quiet of their room and helping her fall asleep quickly.

Inside his room, Castle put his hand on his fiancée's back and murmured, "Can I help?"

"Do you want-" Beckett started to ask. When he shook his head, she smiled and said, "I agreed to Tuesday," teasing him a little as she turned her head to let him take her hair down from its ponytail. She wasn't surprised when he didn't say anything and as they worked to get each other's clothes off she said, "You know, when Serrano came into the office, I found myself calm," to break the silence.

Since by then they were dressed in their pajamas and were heading to bed, Castle was able to study her expression, seeing she was serious. "In what way?" he asked.

Smiling slightly, Beckett got on the bed and said, "I didn't care," as he joined her.

"It doesn't surprise me, and I'm assuming you told me that in case you thought you were losing it?" Castle asked. He laughed shortly when she gave him a look and then quickly said, "No, you're not acting different, you're acting as you should. But you don't have to decide between our little girl and your job, so we're good."

"We are," Beckett said. She then looked down at her legs; under the sheet; and commented, "How long until Tuesday?"

Studying her closely, Castle couldn't stop the wide grin on his face, and he cupped her cheek as he kissed her deeply, sensuously. When they managed to part for some much needed air, he murmured huskily against her lips, "I love you too Kate."

A few more kisses were exchanged before the two laid down together and pressed close as they were soon asleep, their bodies still needing to recover. But they were feeling less stress, less need to reassure themselves as they had the next day to look forward to and far more to anticipate.


	20. She Sprinkles Flowers In The Dirt

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The lyrics in the chapter are from the song Sat Singing by George Harrison, a song from the original rejected track listing of his album Somewhere in England.
> 
> The title of this chapter is a lyric from the song That Day is Done, written by Paul McCartney and Elvis Costello, from Paul McCartney's album Flowers in the Dirt.

"So you honestly think we'd find a better place than where we're going today?" Beckett asked her fiancé as she handed him one of the mugs of coffee that she'd made.

"I do," Castle said. "I mean, we shouldn't just limit ourselves to this one building. What if something happens before we can buy it?"

"But five bedrooms is expensive Castle," Beckett pointed out to him. "So we're likely to find buildings a lot more costly than this one."

"Let's just look, keep our minds open to the possibility of other places," Castle said.

"Alright, but watch the prices please," Beckett said, looking at him.

"Look, here's one in Midtown," Castle said. "But…"

"Too far from her school," Beckett finished for him. "But a better price than Riverside South. Look at the link." She frowned when she didn't see any floor plans for any of the apartments the building had and a small amount of pictures. "We'll put that down as maybe," she commented, writing on the pad of paper she'd brought into the room when Castle had suggested looking at other buildings when they'd woken up.

"Okay, then going back, too expensive…" he said, scrolling down the page. "Expensive… this one looks nice but it's in DUMBO…"

"Too far, why don't we set a price?" Beckett said.

"I don't think we need to worry about rent," Castle told her as he took a break from scrolling to sip his coffee since his other arm was wrapped around Beckett's shoulders. "I keep writing books and getting royalties, and you have a paycheck, we'll be good."

"I don't get paid that much," Beckett pointed out to him wryly.

"No, but we'll still both contribute," Castle said. "But really Kate, I'm not saying let's buy a place in building that's… seventy-five million, that's over the top. I just want us to get a good place for Julia and Alexis that we can afford."

Sighing, Beckett said, "Alright, but after seeing all these starting prices, I'm feeling better about Riverside now."

"Still have another two and half hours," Castle said. "Should we keep looking?"

"Yes," Beckett urged him. "But, put in the same price that Riverside starts at."

Nodding, Castle did as she'd said, and then commented, "Not many places, there's that DUMBO building again, and ours of course."

"It's not ours Castle," Beckett said with a slight smile before she leaned her head on his shoulder. "Take a look at the Amsterdam Fifth Avenue," she said, seeing the building.

"Well, the floor plans are interesting," Castle commented as he brought them up.

"And the layouts are nice," Beckett said. "But it's right next to a hospital, I don't think I want Julia right next to one, even if it is by the park."

"We can look at Tower East," Castle said. "It's less than Riverside." He clicked on the link and said, "Near the East River; I was hoping for closer to the park."

"And it's a little far from Julia's school too," Beckett said. She tilted her head as he brought up the floor plan for the five bedroom apartments and said, eyes wide, "Two master bedrooms."

"I think we'd have to give that to Julia, she'll be living with us longer than Alexis likely will. Though she's welcome to stay longer if she needs to right?" Castle asked his fiancée as he opened the pictures.

"She is, because we're seeing now how expensive even one bedroom apartments can be," Beckett replied. "Well," she said as he was clicking through the pictures. "It's nice, so another maybe?"

"If anything happens with Riverside, then we'll need to look at the pros and cons of these two," Castle said. "And we might have to put the price up slightly more."

"If it comes to that, then alright," Beckett said as he set aside the laptop. She was going to speak when she heard a knock at the door, and since it was open she looked with her fiancé to see it was their daughter. "Come in sweetie," she said, smiling as she set aside her empty mug. She took Julia into her arms as she climbed up to her, kissing her cheek. "How did you sleep?"

"Good, what were you doing on the computer? A game?" Julia asked.

"Just looking for anymore apartments," Castle said, kissing her. "But we're going to hold off for after we go look today."

"It looks nice," Julia said. "But what's bill… billards?"

"Billiards," Beckett said. "I'm surprised you didn't ask earlier, it's a game that I'm sure if we move there your daddy will teach you to play."

"We'll, I could, but I'd have to get her a stool so she could reach the top of the table," Castle pointed out. "I'll show it to you on my tablet; I have a game for it."

"Kay," Julia said. "When we move, do I have to leave my stuff at home?"

"No, we'll take most of our stuff with us," Beckett replied. "But not everything since Castle and Alexis will be moving in with us."

"For now though, I think we should have breakfast. And tell them Kate," Castle said.

"We… oh, we forgot to tell them," Beckett said, suddenly remembering what he was talking about. She slid off the bed as he did, and grabbed Julia before carrying her out into the living room. "First, what's for breakfast?"

" _Crêpes_ ," Castle said simply.

"Alright, but don't lose track of them, you remember what happened last time," Beckett said warningly.

"I remember," Castle said. "And since it's my breakfast too, I'll be careful. That being said, I think I know what Julia can do for us."

"Set the table?" the little girl asked.

"That I can do," Alexis said, coming down the stairs. "Gram?"

"She's not back yet if she's not in her room," Castle commented. "So you might be on your own with your sister."

"Fine with me, but she looks to be slightly impatient right now," Alexis pointed out, nodding to the little girl who was frowning at them.

Pretending to jump in fright, Castle smiled when Julia lost her frown at that and said, "Okay, so I guess you want me to tell you what you can help with." When she nodded her head furiously he said, "You can help your mom with the orange juice."

"I can?" Julia asked as Beckett was getting oranges from the fridge.

"You can, luckily it's a newer juicer," she said to her daughter as she cut the first fruit. "Watch your fingers," she said as Julia set the half on the top and pulled down the lever to squeeze the juice out.

"In the meantime, what about this?" Alexis asked, holding a USB drive.

"Music?" Castle asked, mixing the _crêpe_ dough in a bowl quickly. "Our music list?" he then was able to guess.

"Go ahead," Beckett said. "I think she wants to hear it," she commented, nodding to Julia who was bouncing as she was waiting for her to clean the juicer.

"Ah, in order," Castle commented as a song by Sam Cooke came on after Alexis had gone to his office.

"No, I put it on shuffle," Alexis said as she came back to them. "We know the list by heart now."

"This one's first!" Julia cried after squeezing another orange.

"It is- the _crêpes_ ," Beckett said, laughing as she was interrupted by Castle grabbing her.

"I have them," Alexis said, smiling as her dad started dancing with his fiancée. She had to smile wider at Julia's expression watching them, and quickly set aside a _crêpe_ before turning off the stove to stand with her sister.

"I guess we need to get used to an- audience! Castle!" Beckett cried as he suddenly dipped her.

"Good morning all," Martha said, at the door then. "And to your fiancée as well Richard, whom I am assuming is there in your arms."

"Morning Mother," Castle said, helping Beckett back up. He shared a kiss with her before letting her go, and going back to the stove asked, "Are you joining us for breakfast?"

"I am, because I am absolutely famished after my night of watching the special Shakespeare in the Park performance. Rafael was brilliant, and afterwards everyone had me recite some of my lines of _Midsummer's Night Dream_ ," Martha said, letting her son kiss her cheek before she squeezed Beckett's arm.

"The one with the fairies and donkey?" Julia asked as Martha came over to her and Alexis as they continued making orange juice.

"It was," Martha replied, kissing both her granddaughters.

"They liked it right?" Julia asked. "'Cause they should."  
"Don't worry, they liked it so much we went out to Le Circe and spent most of the night reciting lines from their next play, _Taming of the Shrew_ , it was a wonderful night," Martha said. "As for now I will change into better clothes for the park; we're still going to fly her kite aren't we?"

"And get a rowboat, Dad and Beckett called for us," Alexis said.

"Just in time too," Beckett commented, preparing Julia's _crêpes_ as she liked them.

"And will you be joining us after your house hunting?" Martha asked.

"We're bringing lunch," Castle said. "But there's something we wanted to tell you all; we'll have to tell your dad later."  
Nodding, Beckett then said, "Castle and I are going to head to the Hamptons a little earlier, on Tuesday morning after breakfast."  
"We were just talking about that, weren't we girls?" Martha said, squeezing Julia's leg.

"We were," Julia said with a nod. "And we'll go two days later to be with you too."

"Right, so you're okay with that?" Beckett asked, kissing her temple.

"We are, and we thought you could use the peace and quiet after this case," Alexis said as she took the full pitcher of juice to the table. "And before the fireworks on Friday."  
"I can't wait for those," Julia said eagerly as Martha helped her down to help her sister set the table.

Squeezing Beckett's hand in relief that their family was alright with them going ahead early, Castle kissed her shoulder before she stopped him, kissing him on the lips. He whispered to her, laughing when she swatted at his shoulder as her cheeks grew red, and they hurried to finish the _crêpes_ for themselves and the others as the table was ready for breakfast.

Sitting around the table, the conversation turned to their holiday that week, and Julia kept making her mother and Castle promise to let her stay awake for the fireworks. When she had finished eating first, she ran to the windows, looking out at the sky to make sure it wasn't going to suddenly rain, and Alexis had to grab her to get her to help clear the table.

"Julia," Castle said as the little girl ran around the living room, dodging her sister.

"It's cabin fever," Beckett commented as they had started to clear the table themselves.

"It is a gorgeous day," Martha said.

"Sweetie," Beckett called out. "You know you might get hurt."

Julia ran to the couch and jumped up on it, giggling and breathless before saying to Alexis, "Sorry, I wanted to run," holding her hands out to her sister.

"I know, but at least you stopped," Alexis replied, picking her up. "But come sit with me by the sink."

"We have it," Castle called.

"No, you two need to get ready and go," Martha said. "Look at the time."

"She's right," Beckett said, kissing Julia as Alexis set her on the counter. "And I have to-"

"We'll take care of Julia, go," Martha said, ushering Beckett over to her son.

"I think she wants us to go," Castle said as he took his fiancée's hand and they walked to his room.

"So do I," Beckett said with a smile before they disappeared inside as he closed the doors behind them. She didn't comment on that, and instead grabbed her clothes she'd had to bring from her place the day before. When she'd changed and had put her hair up into a ponytail, she was looking at the mirror above his dresser, breathing out slowly.

"What's wrong?" Castle asked, noticing the slight sigh as he came out from the bathroom, ready to go.

"No, I'm just wondering, what's this realtor's going to think when he sees us?" Beckett asked, gesturing to her nose which was still bruised though slowly fading and less visible under her makeup.

"Well, your cuts are pretty much gone; thank Julia for that," Castle said.

Smiling as she recalled as he did the way their daughter insisted on putting ointment on each of her cuts the day before, Beckett said, "It does look a little suspicious though, both of us with bruised noses."

"I don't know," Castle commented, looking at himself in the mirror. Since his bruise was deeper it was still there, but he could tell it was already starting to lighten in color. "He might think we're into some super rough sex," he continued with a shrug.

"Are you?" Beckett asked, giving him a look.

"We talked about that already Kate; no," Castle said though he knew she was teasing him. "So, we're ready?" he asked as he went to her.

"Almost," Beckett said, turning to him. She wrapped her arms around his neck, kissing him deeply before he responded, holding her against him.

Skipping into the room, Julia giggled softly when she saw them; looking down at her kite she was holding until she peered up at them. "Hi!" she said when she realized they were looking at her in slight surprise.

"Looks like she's ready to go too," Beckett said, smiling at her fiancé. She shared a quick kiss with him and then went over to their daughter saying, "Is your kite ready?"

"Yeah, I got to pick my shirt," Julia said proudly as they walked out to the living room where Martha was coming down the stairs.

"Something bright and festive," she said, smiling as Julia nodded in agreement.

"That was a good purchase," Castle said. "It suits her Mother."  
"As long as Julia likes it," Martha said. "Now you two better leave if you don't want to be late."

"She's right," Beckett said. "Okay, so you know what we always say, be good, listen to them and-" she started to tell Julia before her phone gave a chirping noise.

"I picked that sound," the little girl told Castle and Martha with a pleased smile. "What is it Mommy?"

"Your grandpapa," Beckett said, reading her text. "Do you mind if he tags along?" she asked Martha, turning her head to Alexis after who was coming down the stairs.

"We can have a lunch with the whole family," Julia said eagerly.

"That's fine, I'll call him now, let him know where we can meet him," Alexis said.

"Okay, we're out of here," Castle said, kissing Alexis' cheek before picking up Julia and making her legs swing out to her squeal before he kissed her cheek. "Have fun before we get there, and let's hope the wind waits for me and your mom to join in okay?"

"I'll tell it to wait," Julia said, a smile on her face before she kissed his cheek.

"We'll take pictures," Beckett said quickly as she took their daughter from Castle. "I remembered sweetie, and I'll let your daddy tell you about what we see, he describes things better than I do."

"Embellishes," Castle commented wryly. "If you want to know what the apartment actually looks like, better ask her."

"I'll ask both of you," Julia said after sharing a kiss with her mother. "Go! That way you can see it."

Saying goodbye to Martha and Alexis, Castle and Beckett headed out, holding hands until they reached the lobby, catching a cab to the building. It was a short trip since it was fairly close to Castle's building, and as they got out and as the taxi left they looked around the area.

"Didn't realize we were this close to the river," Castle said, since they were across the street from it.

"It looks like a good neighborhood," Beckett said, glancing down the street. "We did pass a park too, half a block away. We can take Julia there."

"I just hope the DiMaggio isn't going to be a problem," Castle replied, nodding to the highway that was also across the street.

"It should be soundproof inside, and let's try to get above the tenth floor," Beckett said before they went to the entrance. She looked around the lobby, until someone called her name and got her attention. "Mr. Hill?" she said.

"Yes, welcome to Riverside South, I couldn't help notice you were taking a look outside, if you're worried about the highway, the building is fully soundproof, so it shouldn't be a concern," the man said as he shook first Beckett's and then Castle's hands. "Are you looking together?"

"Actually I'm just here to give her advice," Castle said simply.

"Okay, then if you'll follow me, I'll let you see the apartment on the thirty-seventh floor," Mr. Hill said. "Unless you want a specific floor?"

"For just looking that's fine," Beckett said as they followed him to the elevators. "Are there different floor plans for the five bedroom apartments?"

"Just one and all the bedrooms will have river views," Mr. Hill told them. At the thirty-seventh floor he led them to apartment 37H and opened the door saying, "This floor is unoccupied, so we're holding the open house here and I'll be up and down with other people looking through. Just let me know when you're done."

"Thank you," Beckett said before she and Castle walked into the foyer. "Oh wow," she said as he closed the door behind them. "This makes me nervous Castle."

"We'll worry about price when we need to," he told her. "For now let's just look."

Nodding, Beckett let him take her hand, and they walked towards the living room when she saw two doorways to their right. "Washer and dryer here," she said. "With a closet and a bathroom."

"And this'll be the library," Castle commented, getting his phone out of his pocket.

"So you could do laundry and write," Beckett teased him. When he looked at her she merely smiled, before looking away. "It's a nice room," she said as they stepped into the library after he'd taken a picture. "We could put all our books in here, not just yours."

"I'm wondering if I should leave them at the loft," Castle commented. "The walls would look pretty bare."

"Your mom would find something to put on them," Beckett said as they avoided the window. "You want to see the living room's view first?" she asked as she noticed him doing that.

"You too," Castle said simply before taking her hand again. When they went back into the living room that the foyer was attached to, he whistled and said, "Julia would love this," as he took a picture before they went closer to the windows.

"I have to wonder if she'd enjoy this window," Beckett said, standing in front of the floor to ceiling window.

"With the view of the river I don't think she'd mind the height," Castle said. "This should be the kitchen," he told his fiancée as they went to the next room through a wide doorway. "This'll be nice for Julia," he commented. "She can run through easily. And we can put the dining room table in there, so serving food is easier."

"It is," Beckett said, scanning the family room that was in front of the kitchen. "What do you think?" she asked after her fiancé had snapped a picture of the room from the doorway and they went to the kitchen.

"This is really awesome," Castle said, looking at the two sets of burners. "Though I'd like to see if they have the black cabinets," he murmured to himself as he was looking through the cabinets. "A pantry," he said, looking over at his fiancée. He was a little startled to see her looking out the window, and he went over to her, seeing her eyes on the river. "Okay?" he asked, putting his hand on her back.

"I am, just thinking about what this would be like if we lived here," Beckett said. "I'm having a hard time seeing it," she confessed after she was quiet for a moment.

"I know, but maybe when we get closer to the wedding and buy a place; maybe here, maybe somewhere else; it will feel more real," Castle suggested. When she smiled he said, "Come and look at the kitchen, I hope you might help me with holiday dinners here."

"I might be persuaded," Beckett said with a smile as she looked at the stove and other appliances. She nodded when he showed the pantry off to her and she squeezed his hand saying, "Take a picture of this?"

"Of course," Castle said. "Imagine this morning in the kitchen, and how it would be here… Still hard to do," he said as his fiancée nodded. "Okay, I would guess the next room will be a bedroom," he told her as he led the way out the door and down the hall.

"The master bedroom," Beckett said, looking around. "It's…" she tried to say before trailing off as they looked around the large room, the bed at the corner where there were windows looking out on the river view. "This is amazing," she finally was able to say.

"I know, a lot of room for a fairly big bed," Castle said, letting go of her hand to watch her walk over to the windows. He smiled when she didn't react to what he'd said, and he went after her, wrapping his arms around her. "We could have a lot of fun in bed in the mornings here love," he murmured to her, running his hands over her abdomen.

"Stop," Beckett said though she was smiling widely. "We could do that anywhere."

"Sure, but not with this kind of view to look at once we calm down," Castle murmured, kissing at the side of her neck.

"Hmm, don't move us here yet," Beckett sighed, suddenly growing serious. She finally made him stop and turned back to him saying, "We should continue, we don't need other people coming in seeing us."

"You make a valid point," Castle said with a nod. He held his hand out to her and together they walked to a doorway to a room that was not the bathroom since they'd spotted that walking in. "A study," he said quickly. "I could write here."  
"And I could yell at you to come to bed because you're taking too long to finish a chapter," Beckett said with a smirk. She stepped inside and said, "If you're willing to share, I'd like to have my computer here," pointing to where there was space for another person's work area.

"That would be great," Castle said. He wrapped his arm around her waist and they went to check out the bathroom quickly. "Big shower; room enough for two… big tub; also room enough for two."

"So are you judging our room by its compatibility with our sex life?" Beckett commented, pretending to sound serious.

"Sure, and it's love life," Castle said as he let her go to let her lead the way back into the hall to see the bedroom across the way.

"You're so serious about that," Beckett commented absently, seeing another closet where there was a washer and dryer. "From my experience, men prefer calling it sex and have done with it. They think calling it making love makes them less macho."

"I think I've proved I've got nothing lacking in machismo," Castle said simply as he took a picture of the bedroom before they went inside. "And if I didn't, tell me to get out of your bed and never return."

Biting on her lower lip, Beckett turned around and said, "A little inappropriate talking about this in our daughter's room."

"It's not hers yet," Castle said. "Tell me love."

"I'm addicted to you Rick, so I believe if I did tell you that, I'd seek you out and defeat the purpose of said words you want me to speak," Beckett said.

"Fuck Kate, there's a lot of reasons I love you, and one of them is this, your wanting me as much as you do without me having to coax it from you," Castle said, swallowing roughly at her words.

"Language C-" Beckett started to say when he kissed her, cutting her off. She knew they needed to continue, but they were alone and would be able to hear the realtor letting anyone in. So she took the chance, and kissed him back as deeply as she could before they parted. "It'll be much better when we share one bed," she murmured, their lips brushing together. "And stop shuttling back and forth."

"I know," Castle said, nuzzling her lips. "Soon though." He finally let her go with a great deal of reluctance, and said, "For now, should we continue?"

"Yes, I hope Alexis doesn't mind this would be Julia's room," Beckett said, knowing the mention of their daughters would bring them back to what they were doing.

"I don't think so, the closets aren't that big," Castle said. "Wait, closet," he said abruptly as they were leaving the room after checking the bathroom. He took her hand and went back into the master bedroom to look at what would be their walk in closet and whistled saying, "Much better than what I have now."

"Me too, and it would fit us both," Beckett said. "Okay, let's take a look at the next one, Alexis' I think."

"Yeah, I think we should give Julia the other one since it has that wall length window, she'd put her bed there, and while it's not as big as this room, I don't get the feeling our daughter would mind," Castle said as they looked it over.

"I think she'd agree with you, but we'll talk to her about it if we buy a place here," Beckett said. "Alexis will like it here right? I know how long home has been the loft; I hope she doesn't think we're stealing you from her."

"She doesn't, she told me she just wants to live with her little sister once Julia is her little sister; to have a family," Castle said as they went to the next bedroom. "She was three when I divorced her mother, so I'm guessing her memories of a family are brief if she does have any. And I don't think we ever quite were a family when I was married to Gina."

"I hope we can give her that," Beckett said. "But she had you and Martha still."

"Remember my mother didn't live with us immediately, she was around to take care of Alexis," Castle reminded her. "I really wished I could give her a mother and father who were happy with each other and siblings, but since it never worked out, I don't blame her for wanting that. Plus I think she does love me as her father," he said with a shrug as his fiancée was looking in the closet in the room. "So, who'll have this room?"

"Who else? Your mother," Beckett said with a smile. "It'll be her second home if she doesn't want to give up the loft; though I don't see her doing that." As they went to the last bedroom she said softly, "I don't know if I've told you Rick." When he turned to her she said, "I do love Alexis, she is probably the best stepdaughter a woman could ask for, marrying a man with a child already. I really got lucky she doesn't outright hate me."

"She loves you too in a way… does that sound bad? Because I'm not trying to make it sound like that," Castle said, thinking that over.

"No, I understand, she loves me because I make you happy, and because I'm the mother of her soon to be sister," Beckett said. When her fiancé nodded, looking surprised she smiled and said, "I took psychology too, so I can understand what she doesn't say and how she acts."

"You make a good point," Castle said as they peered into the bathroom outside the last bedroom. "Okay, this isn't too small for your dad is it?"

"If all he does is stay here, I think he can manage, it's still a pretty good size," Beckett said with a smile.

"And that's it for the apartment," Castle said. "So are you still nervous."

"You have a good accountant right?" Beckett asked.

"I do, we'll look at what we can do with both our paychecks, but I'm telling you Kate, I could buy this place right now," Castle said.

"Then we'll look around still but… I want this apartment badly," Beckett finally confessed. She laughed when Castle nodded rapidly in agreement to her as he wrapped his arms around her when they were in the entry. She shared a kiss with him before saying, "We should go, it's early for lunch, but I wouldn't say no to Stefano's if we went now."

"Stefano's in the park, another reason why I love you," Castle said, taking her hand and kissing the back of it tenderly. "Let's go tell Mr. Hill you're interested but need to wait and see."

Nodding, Beckett followed him out into the hall; luckily the realtor was just getting off the elevator with a family. She spoke to the man quickly as Castle held the car for her, and after he'd given her his business card they took his advice to look at the amenities. There was the pool; which they agreed when they saw it would be perfect to use year round with their daughters; the billiards room and screening room. There were a couple terraces they spent a while at, talking about how they wanted to paint the white walls in each room if they bought the apartment, and when they finally went outside they felt things were different, that they really had a future they weren't just talking about. She took Castle's hand as he was hailing a cab, and squeezed it momentarily, suddenly eager to show their family what they'd seen and their plans for their possible future home.

* * *

Draping his jacket over his arm, Castle took the pizza boxes that his fiancée was holding before they walked away from the cab they had taken from Stefano's to Central Park. "Alexis said they're near Strawberry Fields," he commented as they walked down the path nearest to them.

"That doesn't surprise me," Beckett said. "Julia always wants to go there though it makes her sad."

"Should we really have explained what happened to John?" Castle asked her as he fished in his pocket for his phone.

"She wanted to know," Beckett said. "I just wish my dad's friend didn't live at the Dakota, the one we went to see the day before Father's Day."

"I remember," Castle said with a nod. "But she did see Yoko in the lobby. I'm surprised she never thought Yoko broke up the band."

"Are we going to have that argument again?" Beckett said with a mockingly suffering sigh.

"When you're a pre-teen, and you have a few… negative experiences with girls, you tend to think they're all like that," Castle said, defending himself. He smiled when she rolled her eyes and said, "No, we don't need to, but she's smart."

"She is; now what's the text?" Beckett asked, gesturing to his phone.

"They're actually near the carousel, under some trees, my mother apparently insisted they have shade so Julia wouldn't get worn out," Castle said.

"You know you always tease her about how she raised you, but I get the feeling she wasn't that bad a mother," Beckett said, as they headed in the direction of the carousel.

"She wasn't, but it's not easy having just a mom, one who's an actress," Castle commented. "But you know, she's my mother, so I do love her. Not to be sappy, I'm just saying it so you don't think I'm heartless."

Laughing, Beckett squeezed his arm briefly as they went past the carousel to where there was a large clearing. "There they are," she said, seeing Julia in her cream colored peasant tunic.

"Mommy!" Julia cried, looking down from her kite that was she was flying with her grandfather. She handed him the string holder, and ran over to them, hugging her mother tightly before Beckett picked her up. "How was it? Was it pretty? Are you gonna buy it?" she asked, babbling.

"Easy sweetheart, we'll talk about it while we have lunch," Castle said as Jim came over to them. "But did you have fun?"

"She did, we took her for a ride on the carousel before we flew the kite," Beckett's dad said. "Alexis went with her."

"Where are they?" Beckett asked, handing her daughter to Castle.

"They went to get drinks for us all," Jim replied. "We were supposed to be sitting on our blanket, but someone couldn't resist trying to fly their kite one more time," he said to his granddaughter teasingly.

"Sorry, but it was fun, now I'll sit down," Julia said. "They're here!" she suddenly called, making the other three jump at how loud she was. She smiled and said, "So they see us."

"You went to Stefano's?" Martha asked as she and Alexis reached the others.

"We couldn't resist," Castle said. "Also we were pretty early when we got out of the building, Kate suggested it."

As they got the paper plates and drinks ready before they started to eat, Castle and Beckett stayed quiet on the subject of the apartment besides his mention of the building. But finally when they'd taken a few bites, Alexis was the first to speak.

"Well? Is it a good place or what?" she asked them.

"I don't think you can look at the pictures I took yet," Castle commented, sharing a smile with his fiancée. "But it's a great building, there's a park really close to it, plus where we are right now we're not too far from it."

"Is it really right by the river?" Julia piped up.

"Pretty much across the street, though the DiMaggio is in front of it. But, if we get a place there, we'll try and get it on a floor higher than the first ten," Castle said.

"And what did you think of it," Martha asked her son's fiancée, who'd been quiet.

"I thought it was great, but we can't really think we're going to get it," Beckett said. "Though at the moment is at the top of our list of places."

"Are you gonna look at more?" Julia asked.

"We'll see," Beckett said, smiling as Castle shook his head no.

"Oh! Mommy, Castle, I got another song," Julia suddenly said after they were quiet for a moment.

"Another? Didn't we just get the list cut down to where we wanted?" Castle teased her as he tickled her.

"She's really eager for this one to be included," Martha said.

"Alright, then don't tell us what it is, just play it," Castle said. "We'll see what we think."

Julia turned to Alexis, when her sister played the song on her phone, and watched her mother and Castle eagerly to see their reactions. "Do you like it?" she whispered when it had finished.

"I remember listening to that song with you before," Beckett said, getting her phone out after she'd finished her slice of pizza. She took the little girl on her lap, and opened the lyrics to the song, reading them before she handed her phone to Castle.

"Wow, you know, Paul's an amazing love song writer, but people shouldn't discount George," Castle said, knowing the moment he'd finished the last lyrics what his fiancée thought of the song. " _The moment that I lose my mind, you come into my heart and say, I'm always here for you to love, surrender to me, let me stay_. That's powerful stuff."

"Getting an idea for your toast at the reception?" Jim said as they all watched him thinking over those lyrics.

"No, I just wish could write that well," Castle said. "Though why I would want to write songs I don't know."

"For Mommy?" Julia suggested. She was a little confused when everyone started to laugh at that and she said, "I meant you should Castle."

"We know sweetheart, and you make a good point, but I don't sing," he pointed out to her. "But, I think we've decided on what we want to do with this song concerning the wedding," he said, looking at his fiancée.

"We have, I think sweetie, we need to replace _Something_ , or just move that song to when we're eating and play this one," Beckett said. "Because that is a better song to dance to."

"Good, I like the song, I picked it 'cause what he says at the end," Julia said, taking her mother's phone from Castle's hand. She played the final verse, and began singing with it as the others turned from the little girl to eventually Castle and Beckett.

_I feel such joy and call your name,  
You're ev'rything my eyes could see.  
I'll gladly kiss it all goodbye,  
Stay ever in your company_

Clearing his throat in slight embarrassment at the stares they were getting, Castle said, stammering a little, "Good, good job singing Julia." He wasn't stammering from the embarrassment though, more because the song's lyrics made him glance at his fiancée in a little bit of desire, wondering if she felt the same. He almost had a jolt when she turned to him, and he could see that in her eyes, making him take a long drink of his soda as his throat was suddenly parched.

"Thank you, but it's a good song, those are perfect words for you and Mommy," the little girl said seriously.

"So we're that transparent?" Beckett said, discomfited by the stares, but able to hide it better than her fiancé. But she found herself slightly more embarrassed at their reaction to each other at the lyrics, since she had to wonder why, it wasn't the first time they'd found a song they could relate to together.

"Pretty much, you don't mind the Sri Krishna in there at the end do you?" Alexis asked, a slight smile on her face.

"Not at all, it's a nice touch actually, though I want to guess he's singing the song to Krishna?" Castle asked his daughter.

"Most likely, that's how most of his songs go," Alexis replied.

"We'll be dancing to this one later," Beckett said. "For now, Julia, do you want to fly your kite one more time before we go?"

"Can I have another pizza?" Julia asked, looking down at the slices left.

"She was running around while we were getting things ready," Jim explained.

"Split a slice with me and your mom," Castle said, picking up the last one with sausage on it.

"How do you do that?" Julia asked interestedly, leaning over on her mother's lap to watch him cut the slice into three thin ones. "Thank you," she said when she had her little slice. She ate a bite and then said, "I really wish I could see the house Mommy."

"Tonight after dinner," Castle said, catching his fiancée's eye. "We can look at the pictures I took. Jim you're invited as well, since I'm sure Kate wants you to see the room that would be yours when you go there."  
"And we want to have dinner with you too," Julia said quickly.

"That too," Castle said with a nod. When they had finished eating, he went with Julia out into the clearing, holding her kite as her mother was helping her with the string holder. "So I guess we're on our own?" he asked as the others were still at the blanket, finishing their drinks and watching them.

"They had to watch her until we got here," Beckett said with a smile. "Let them take a break."

"Okay, ready?" Castle asked. When Julia nodded swiftly he laughed and then held up the kite, letting it fly up on the breeze. "Watch how much slack you have," he called as it started to dip down. It went back up, and he walked back to Julia and Beckett, watching with them as the kite went high up before drifting back down when the gusts of wind died down slightly. "Not bad, you-" he started to say.

"I'll get it! Grandpapa said that was my job," Julia cried before running down the grass to the kite.

"Are you sure?" Castle asked when their daughter was out of hearing range.

"Yes," Beckett said simply. She wasn't surprised when he reached out to her, squeezing her hand lightly before they helped Julia get the string wound up and Castle was taking the kite again, going in front of them ready to hold it up to the wind.

As Castle let the kite go, Julia started to run, giggling when he called her name and ran after her. She knew, since her mother was wearing heels, that she couldn't chase after her and that was why she'd taken off. She dropped her kite; which had fallen to the ground by then already; crying out as Castle was able to reach her. "It's not fair, my legs aren't long!" she laughed as he carried her back to her mother, blowing teasingly on her cheek.

"Good thing, it's a little hot to be running around in the sun sweetie," Beckett said as she carried the kite back to the blanket. "Please tell me you have her bubbles."

"Right… here," Jim said, distracting Julia with his hand before he pulled the tall bottle out from the bag Alexis had brought with them that had Julia's hat and sunscreen.

"Ooh, is that something Great-Grandpapa did?" the little girl asked her mother, giggling.

"It is," Beckett said with a smile as her dad opened the bubbles and handed the wand to her. They were all studying Julia then as she blew a few bubbles before she then said, "What are you thinking about sweetie?"

"The song," Castle said, as Julia started to hum before her mother had finished her question.

"Yeah, it's a pretty song," the little girl said with a sigh as she handed the wand and bottle to her mother.

"You want to dance darling?" Martha asked.

"Yes please," Julia said. She went to her sister and said, "Play the same song we played for Mommy and Castle."

When the song started yet again, Castle watched the little girl swaying as Beckett blew a few bubbles in her direction, and he smiled with her as she danced to the music, humming again. He took his fiancée's hand that was freed when Alexis took the bubbles, and he wrapped his arm around her shoulders when their daughters were then both dancing, Martha taking over the bubbles. He kissed her temple, not caring that moment about anyone seeing, the moment making him want to be as close to his fiancée as he could. And as Beckett squeezed his hand hanging over her shoulder, he felt it in the reassuring pressure of her hand as Julia and Alexis sang together, wide smiles on both their faces as they began to do so.

* * *

"I'm not sure about this Katie," Jim said as he and his daughter walked down the path.

"I need her close right now Dad," Beckett said gently. "I can't explain it, I just want to know she's there, that she's having fun and being a kid even while we're here."

Stopping then, Jim looked down and sighed saying, "It's been a long time."

"I know," Beckett murmured as she looked at her mother's tombstone. "But she would understand."

Smiling slightly, Jim said, "She would. You know we talked about it once."

"About my having kids?" Beckett asked, looking up at him.

"Not necessarily. More we discussed having grandchildren, though you were young still and we didn't want to think about you having children," Jim replied. "Your mother wasn't ready for that and neither was I. But we were hoping in the future we'd have a grandchild to spend time with, and spoil, I'll admit," he said, smiling again, briefly, as his daughter glanced at him at that. He fell silent then, and looking at his wife's name sighed and said, "When you said you were going to adopt Julia, when I asked if you were sure about doing that, it was more because I wasn't ready to be a grandfather without your mom with me. But Julia…"

"You know Castle told me that I needed Julia once," Beckett said, putting her hand on his arm. "As much as she needed me, I think we both did."

"She's been… a joy," Jim murmured. "You would love her Johanna, she loves you, so much," he directed to his wife's tombstone.

Wrapping her arms around her dad, Beckett hugged him tightly and said, "I'll give you some time alone." She went back to the path then, looking towards the playground the next block over, though it was out of view from the cemetery that her mother had been buried in. She took her aquamarine pendant from under her blouse, and ran her fingertip along the faceted top of the blue stone. She then did the same to the three diamonds next to it; finding herself wearing her engagement ring on her necklace more and more often since she and Castle had been up at the cabin. She wondered what Julia was doing with him then, hoping she was enjoying her time playing with him, hoping she wasn't wondering still what she and Jim were doing though she'd asked numerous times since they'd arrived.

"Katie," Jim said somberly, touching her shoulder. He smiled when she slowly turned to him and said, "I'll be at the entrance."

Nodding, Beckett went back to the gravestone, and once her father was out of sight, she murmured, "He's never going to take another mother away from another daughter Mom. I protected your granddaughter, my fiancé and our lives together. I just hope that's enough, but I swear I'll never forget you. Julia and Castle will make sure we don't. Dad was right, she loves you so much." She felt a little odd speaking; she didn't usually do it; but something in her felt that she needed to say it aloud. She looked down at her mother's ring she held in her hand, and she sighed as she studied it.

Finally, Beckett brushed away the tears that had fallen down her cheeks without her realizing, and when she felt she was ready, turned to go to the entrance. The walk calmed her down, so she was more than a little surprised to see her fiancé and father watching Julia at the planter at there, picking flowers. "Why are you here?" she asked Castle.

"She didn't want to play," he replied simply. "I tried telling her you'd come back, but she kept saying she wanted to go with you." He then said hesitantly, "I brought her here because she was serious Kate."

"Sweetie-" Beckett started to say to her daughter.

"Can I go and see Grandmama, Mommy?" Julia interrupted her, coming over to them with her arms full of flowers.

"How did you know what we were doing?" Jim asked his granddaughter, since she'd been so focused on picking the flowers and hadn't spoken to him.

"Mommy has Grandmama's ring," Julia said simply. "Celia told me she goes with her mommy and daddy to see her grandma. Can I see her and give her these?"

"You don't need to sweetie, I know it'll make you sad," Beckett said quickly.

"I wanna tell Grandmama I love her," Julia said softly.

"Come on," Beckett said. She put her hand on her daughter's back and was going to start walking back to the entrance when she paused, seeing her father and Castle were staying in place.

"We'll stay here, better you go alone," Castle told her.

Beckett smiled slightly at him before she took Julia into the cemetery, watching the little girl to make sure she wasn't getting scared. But she was surprised when her daughter wasn't looking around them, instead staring straight at the path, a determined sort of expression on her face. When they reached Johanna Beckett's gravestone, she said softly, "That's her name Julia."

"It starts with j like mine," the little girl said, smiling up at her mother a little. "Johanna," she murmured to herself, looking down at the dates. "Is that her birthday?"

"Mmm-hmm," Beckett said, not reading it since her daughter knew that already. She avoided the date of her mother's murder and said, "You remember your grandpapa and I told you what your grandmother liked to say."

With a nod, Julia whispered, looking up at her mother, "Can I give these to her now?"

"Go ahead, but tell me when you want to go okay? Don't stay because you think you need to," Beckett said, brushing a lock hair off her daughter's cheek.

Julia nodded again, and she started to step towards the gravestone when her mother called her name. She turned back to her, and was surprised when she draped a silver chain over her neck before cupping her cheeks. "Thank you," she whispered.

Watching as the little girl walked up to the marker then, Beckett felt her breath constrict in her chest. Her daughter was too young to be laying down the flowers she thought to herself. But there was nothing that could be done, only hope that there was somehow a way her mother could know Julia, could see her and watch over her. She had never really felt like her mother was with her since she had been murdered, but the soft breeze blowing against them at that moment made her feel that sense of calm she'd had before learning that the IA investigation into her had been dropped. She knew what Castle would say if he was with her, but she shook the idea that her mother was there with them, turning her attention to the little girl as she was starting to speak.

"Hi Grandmama," Julia said quietly. "Mommy and Grandpapa said you know who I am, so I won't say. But… I miss you Grandmama even if I didn't meet you ever." She picked up the ring her mother had put around her neck and smiled saying, "I feel like you are here, and you are watching me, Mommy and Grandpapa. We're happy but we miss you a lot a lot. I hope you can see that Mommy is happy now, she has Castle and they're gonna get married and I'm gonna be their little girl. But I wish you were here, 'cause the wedding." She frowned as her chin wobbled when tears filled her eyes, but she finally said, "If I ever get a little sister, or a brother, I'll tell them about you 'cause you're still my grandmama." Sniffing she then said, "I love you Grandmama, I miss you lots."

Beckett was nearly in tears herself as Julia turned and walked back to her, burying her face against her abdomen as soon as she'd reached her. She felt her daughter shaking once, and she leaned down, picking her up as Julia's sobs escaped. "She loves you too sweetie," she told the weeping little girl. "As much as we do." She wasn't too surprised when Julia didn't respond to that, and she turned to leave, not saying a word to Castle or her dad when she reached them at the entrance.

Jim was about to move to comfort his granddaughter, but wasn't really that surprised when Castle rushed to Beckett and Julia. He smiled slightly as Castle touched the back of the little girl's head before murmuring a few words to them both. When his daughter's fiancé looked back at him, he nodded and followed them to the curb, hailing a cab as Castle was speaking to Julia with Beckett, both of them trying to calm down their daughter. He felt that sense of them being cared for then as he watched the writer dry Julia's cheeks and squeeze Beckett's arm, and he knew he'd have no compunction in letting them marry and become their own little family; they would be happy and that was all he wanted for his daughter and granddaughter.

* * *

Looking over to the door as it opened, Alexis jumped up from the couch when she saw Beckett walk in first, her dad behind her with Julia in his arms. "What's wrong?" she asked, feeling like there was something the matter with the way the little girl was limp in his hold, knowing her sister wasn't taking a nap.

"It's okay, she's a little exhausted, she was crying for a while," Castle said as Jim closed the door behind them.

"Did she find out what you were doing?" Martha asked from the kitchen where she'd been pouring herself a glass of wine.

"I went to see Grandmama with Mommy," Julia said softly, turning her head from where she'd been looking over Castle's shoulder. "Can I go down?"

"Sure," he replied. Before he put her on the floor he kissed her cheek, letting Beckett do the same. "What do you want to do now sweetheart?"

When Julia shrugged, Alexis suggested, "Why don't we look at the pictures Dad took at the apartment Jules?"

"Can we?" the little girl smiled a bit at that.

"We can," Castle said, when Beckett nodded to his questioning look. He headed to his office with the others following him, and sent his pictures to his e-mail, opening it on the TV. "Okay, so first is the foyer from the front door," he began.

Beckett smiled as her fiancé seemed to be enjoying the others being enthralled with his "tour" and she couldn't blame them. She supplied a few comments when she needed to, but she was watching hers and Castle's daughter, seeing that she was slowly cheering up, though she kept her grandmother's ring on her thumb, rubbing the black stone at the top.

"This'll be your room Julia," Castle said. He smiled when he saw the genuine awe on the little girl's face and said, "It's slightly smaller than the room we want to give your sister, but we didn't think you'd mind too much with the view."

Shaking her head Julia said eagerly, "I think it's perfect."

"Also, Alexis, Julia's room would have two closets-" Beckett began to say, wanting to bring up something that had bothered her when she'd seen the room.

"That's alright, looking at that picture of what's supposed to be my room, the closet looks fine by me," Alexis commented, smiling as her dad's fiancée turned to see the picture on the screen.

"Then never mind," Beckett replied with a smile.

"That will suit me nicely," Martha commented, seeing the next picture was a different room.

"That'll be yours if we move there," Castle assured his mother. "And this is the guest bedroom slash your room Jim."

"Like she said, it'll suit me nicely," Beckett's dad said with a nod.

"Can you paint the walls?" Julia asked shyly as Castle started closing his TV.

"You can," Beckett replied. "And if we did move in there, we'd need to get furniture, so it won't look exactly like that."

"Have you been furnishing it in your mind already Kate?" Martha asked.

"Yes, though I'm trying not to since we don't know yet if we'll move there," Beckett replied as she took Julia's hand and led her out into the living room. She was a little surprised when her daughter tugged her hand, and looking down saw that she was trying to take off her mother's necklace. "You don't want to wear it anymore sweetie?" she asked as she helped her.

Julia didn't say anything, only followed her mother into Castle's room before saying, "I don't wanna be sad; Grandmama wouldn't want me to be would she?"

"No," Beckett said, smiling. "But she knows you won't stop missing her."

Nodding Julia then asked, "She likes Castle right?"

"I'm hoping," he said, coming inside the room then. "Sorry, I wanted to talk to you about dinner," he said quickly when Beckett looked over at him. "And this is my room too of course."

Smiling Julia said, "Are you gonna cook?"

"Yep, and I also want to talk to you, to see if you wanted to help Alexis with a salad," Castle asked. When Julia nodded rapidly, he smiled and said, "She's waiting in the kitchen for you." When their daughter had left, he looked at his fiancée and asked, "What happened?"

Taking a slight breath, Beckett explained what Julia had said at the cemetery, and wasn't surprised when he wrapped his arms around her tightly. "We have a wonderful little girl," she murmured.

"We do, I just wonder… why is it that she loved your mother so quickly, even though she's only seen her in photos?" Castle asked.

"I asked her psychiatrist about that, and it's because she's my mother," Beckett said. "You know how much our daughter loves me, knowing that my mom is to me what I am to Julia herself, she loves her in that way though she's never had grandparents until I adopted her."

"That makes sense," Castle said. "Are you okay?" he then asked, posing the question slightly hesitantly.

"I am, just, feeling like I've done all I can," Beckett said. "And hoping my mother would understand that."

"She does, she has to Kate; that calm you were feeling Friday morning? That had to be your mother," Castle said. He was surprised to hear the slight laughter from his fiancée and asked, "What?"

"I was thinking of you saying that exact thing earlier when I was feeling the same when we visited her; Julia and I," Beckett explained.

Nodding Castle said, "It's her, she loves you both, and would want you to be happy."

"I know," Beckett said, going to her nightstand and setting her mother's ring inside her engagement ring box. As she walked back to her fiancé, she handed him her ring she'd taken from her necklace, watching as he slipped it on her finger. She let him pull her into a kiss, pleased to not feel any kind of hesitation from him as she responded gently to match him.

Pulling back, Castle murmured, "Tomorrow."

"I know, tomorrow will be difficult, but just, be there with me when we see Isabella," Beckett whispered as they pressed their foreheads together.

"I will," Castle replied. He let her go but before she could walk away he quickly said, "I was thinking, if it's possible, I want us to look out for her." He was a little surprised at first to see the pleased expression on his fiancée's face, but then realized when she hugged him tightly why. "You had that same idea?" he asked.

"Yes, since I was holding her in front of the cabin. I couldn't just leave her without thinking of her again," Beckett said softly. "I wonder if her aunt and uncle will be okay with that."

"More than likely," Castle said. He took her hand then, leading her to the living room before he told her, "For now, let's just forget tomorrow, watch something with me tonight alone?"

"As long as it's not porn," Beckett said right before they stepped out into the room. She nearly laughed as her fiancé froze in mid-step, and she squeezed his hand before walking away.

Shaking his head slightly, Castle went after her, relieved at her smile as she went to their daughter, kissing her cheek. Julia's giggle in response was a kind of reassurance, and he smiled as he watched them, feeling their happiness as he walked a little faster so he could join them, talking to the little girl and her mother about their dinner menu that night as Julia listened in obvious fascination as he used all the descriptive words that he knew to make her smile again, the sight filling him with joy.

* * *

Hearing the whispered words, Beckett smiled as Castle spoke to their daughter, telling her he loved her though she was asleep. She squeezed his arm in passing before going to kiss Julia on the cheeks before brushing her lips across her forehead. "I love you too sweetie, I hope you have wonderful dreams tonight," she couldn't help saying. Julia had been put to bed hours before by all of them again; her father staying later once more as he had Friday night; and she hoped that would help the little girl sleep. Though she knew, as she stood up from Alexis' bed, her running around the park in the summer sun likely helped greatly as well. "Night Alexis," she said softly to Castle's daughter who was coming in.

"Night, see you in the morning," the young woman said, kissing her dad's cheek. When they had stepped out into the hall, she closed the door and went to her desk, sitting down to go onto her tablet, using a new app her dad had found after dinner, to paint the walls in pictures of rooms. She smiled when she looked at her first attempt, a deep peacock blue, and then shook her head, the sextant on the dresser of her Hamptons bedroom muted in the color. She began to use different colors, finding two she liked before she went on another app, playing a game quietly as she looked up at her sister, making sure she slept peacefully.

"So, what was it you wanted to watch?" Beckett was asking as she walked from Castle's room to his office, changed into her pajamas. When he nodded to the TV screen she laughed slightly and said, " _The Rutles_?"

"There's no way Julia will be able to watch this, Eric Idle made it," Castle said. "But George is in it, I just felt like watching it since this pops up after we watch the three Python movies."

"Then play on Mr. Castle," Beckett said teasingly, sitting on his lap.

Castle smiled at that, and played the movie, holding her securely to him, watching her reactions as much as he was watching the movie. He was relieved when it was in fact a comedy, and he and Beckett were laughing every once in a while. "See? George," he said jokingly, nudging her in the side as the singer appeared on the screen.

"I see," Beckett whispered, shaking her head though she was enjoying seeing George Harrison pretending to be a reporter. When the movie finished shortly after, she sighed as Castle switched to the news.

"Too depress-" Castle began to say before the anchor said the name Bracken.

" _Details are still unknown in the death of the former senator, but it has been leaked to this station that Bracken was using two hit men to try and murder a woman, speculation hints that she may have been raped by_ -" the woman was saying.

Changing the channel, Castle flipped to a random one, and sighed, seeing it was the show that he, Beckett and Julia had just started watching, about an aquarium company in Las Vegas. "Sorry," he said. "I should have remembered, and it's the top of the hour."

"Don't worry," Beckett murmured as they turned their attention to a subject a lot less irritating to her. She rested her head on her fiancé's shoulder, sighing as the two men who owned the company were joking with each other. She wasn't annoyed, just emotionally tired though she wasn't that sad. She wrapped her arms around Castle's neck, and pressed close to him as he stroked her hair and they watched the episode, not caring they'd seen it already.

Turning off the TV during the ending credits, Castle started to speak, but noticed that his fiancée had fallen asleep at one point. Smiling slightly, he picked her up after setting aside the remote, telling himself to stop enjoying how she felt a little delicate in his arms as he went into his room. Just as he was though, she suddenly woke up and he told her quickly, "You fell asleep; I'm taking you to bed."

"Just as long as you don't want to do anything else besides sleep," Beckett said, wrapping her arms around him the rest of the way to the bed.

"No, I'm kind of drained myself, I say it was that same sun," Castle said, going back to close the door to his office. "But that was a lot of fun," he said as he had seen his fiancée sit up in bed.

"It was, I'll have to remind my dad to take her kite," Beckett said musingly.

"What're you thinking?" Castle asked, sitting on the side next to her.

"Nothing bad, just remembering they seemed to be really okay with us going to the beach house earlier than them," Beckett said.

"They agreed with us wanting some time alone," Castle said. "I think our parents would like us to stay together you know."

"I do, my dad's always been worried about me dating," Beckett commented with a little smile as Castle climbed over her to get under the sheet covering her lap.

"What?" he asked as he soon sat up with her. "He wanted you to date even when you were sixteen?"

"Please, that convent threat I told you about concerning my bike? He used it many times before. Apparently my grandfather told my mom that all the time," Beckett said, smiling slightly at the memory.

"Kate, can I ask you something?" Castle said a little hesitantly then, watching her.

"You can, but remember, depends on the question for you to get an answer," Beckett replied.

Taking her hand, Castle wasn't really surprised when she looked startled at his serious expression and asked, "Is it enough?"

Beckett smiled and said, "It is, I've done everything I can do stop him from killing. And it was either going to turn out I put him in jail for murdering my mother, put him in jail for another crime, or kill him. I did what had to be done, and I'm still alive, I have you, and we have Julia. There won't be any more investigating my mother's murder, I know what happened, and whoever judges Bracken now, they know too."

Reaching up then and cupping her cheek, Castle studied his fiancée's eyes, and saw the conviction of her words there in the brown depths. He leaned over then, kissing her gently, tenderly before he pulled back and whispered, "I find myself looking forward to the Hamptons a lot more."

"Hmm, me too," Beckett murmured as she kissed him quickly on the lips. "For now though, sleep?"

"Yeah," Castle said quickly before they slid fully underneath the thin sheet. He pressed against her back as she lay on her side, and kissing her shoulder he murmured, "I love you Kate."

"I love you too Castle," Beckett replied, turning to share another kiss with him. She guessed that he was feeling the same, as they were both a little rough at first with one another. But they finally parted, and she felt him relaxing before she allowed herself the same luxury. Her eyes closed and she found herself reaching that dim line between consciousness and sleep, one thing she was aware of before she slipped past into slumber was Castle's arm around her, holding her through the night.


	21. You're Everything My Eyes Could See

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The title of this chapter is a lyric from the song Sat Singing by George Harrison, from his original rejected track listing of his album Somewhere in England.

The sound of hooves thudding in the early morning air cut through the sound of birds chirping and the distant sound of waves crashing along the shore. The two horses rode over the field, bounding over the fence they came to at their riders' command. They eased their gaits on the other side, heads bobbing up and down as they were slowed to a walk.

"Not bad," Castle commented, teasing his fiancée.

"Yeah, I knew how to do that before you, so I'm sure that was great," Beckett shot back, joking as well. She smiled as he laughed at her and she let him take her free hand as they walked their horses back the rest of the way to the stables. It was the day after their arrival in the Hamptons, and were taking their morning ride that he had suggested back in the city. They'd been there since early afternoon the day before, and she was already feeling a lot more relaxed not having to think about their past case. "So, breakfast after this?" she suggested.

"You worked through the bear claw already?" Castle asked.

"Half a bear claw," Beckett reminded him.

"Yeah, I was thinking just some of the fruit we picked up yesterday," Castle agreed. "But you want to swim at the pool or the beach today?"

"Pool, we were at the beach last night," Beckett said with a smile. "Though that was a lot of fun."

"I'll agree, it definitely was," Castle said, nodding. "Pool should be fun too, we'll be alone."

"You're right, we will," Beckett said simply before she let go of Castle's hand and rode the rest of the way to the stables which they were almost to. She looked back over her shoulder, knowing she was teasing her fiancé with that, but she couldn't help it. Turning back, she could feel her own frustration as she had woken up that morning aroused from her dreams about Castle and what they'd been doing in them, feeling the last few days where they'd been unable to do anything in the tension of her body. Shaking her head, she stopped her horse in front of the building where the horse's stall was and dismounted, seeing he was doing the same next to her.

"I can keep up," Castle commented as they walked into the building.

"Good, you need to," Beckett replied simply. She smiled when her fiancé paused in mid-step, and she turned her attention to the stable hand that was approaching them, handing the woman the reins. "Any chance to give him an apple?"

"A carrot," the woman replied, handing one to her as she held the horse in place.

Feeding her horse, Beckett murmured to it as she rubbed her hand up and down his forehead and muzzle. When it had finished the carrot, she let the stable hand take it, looking over at Castle who was handing his horse off to another worker. "Okay, so, home?" she asked.

"Well, wash our hands first, and then home," Castle said, showing her his right hand where his horse had slobbered a little over it in eating its carrot.

Beckett smiled and led the way to the sink near the entrance, saying, "What time are those reservations?"

"Seven thirty," Castle said. "I wanted to leave us enough time for either the pool or the beach; I didn't know where we'd be going."

"Speaking of the restaurants," Beckett began as they left the stable. She had to stop short as she was almost running into a woman who was trying to walk in. She and the woman grabbed each other by the arms and she said, "Rebecca!"

"Kate, hey, so it was you two I saw," Rebecca Foster said with a smile. "I was getting something for Dave and spotted you riding in; I didn't know you rode."

"Me?" Beckett asked.

"Both of you," Rebecca corrected.

"I didn't know you did," Beckett said as Castle was looking at the object that their friend had dropped.

"I have since I was little," Rebecca commented. "So where's Julia?"

"In the city," Castle replied. "The rest of the family is coming tomorrow morning."

"Great, Mari will be happy to hear that," Rebecca said. "Come and see David, he'll want to say hi."

"Are you riding?" Castle asked, handing her the item she'd dropped.

"Not exactly," Rebecca replied as she led the way past the stables.

"How're Shane and Mari?" Beckett asked. She was surprised when the woman stopped abruptly and asked, "Was I not supposed to ask?" wondering at her reaction.

Sighing, Rebecca turned to them and said, "David and I were wondering how to tell you two about this, since we knew you'd wonder. But I should just say it, Shane isn't our son."

"He's… but he looks just like Dave," Castle said in surprise as Beckett looked to him in her shock.

"That's because he's our nephew," Rebecca replied. "His mother; David's sister; became an alcoholic when he was four, so she gave him to David and me, since we were married by then. She's been sober for about six years, then a year ago she reconnected with Shane's father; he was the result of their one night together after their first date; they got married, and last month after school ended she came back to take him with her to their new home in Charleston."

"That might explain why Shane wasn't really with you that often," Castle said slowly.

"Those times he really was on trips," Rebecca said. "And you met him at that party after Christmas. Though he never was that close with the three of us."

"You're sure his mother's sober?" Beckett asked.

"She is, and we met Shane's father; he's a reverend now," Rebecca replied. "So we're hoping she and Shane will do okay with him to watch over them."

"How are you and David? And what about Mari?" Beckett inquired.

"Well, with regards to Mari, she and Shane were never close, he never let himself treat her like a sister," Rebecca replied. "So she accepted that he was actually her cousin really well. And as for us… we're okay, it hurts a little since we started thinking of him as a son after all these years of raising him, but…" She ended with a shrug and said, "We just want him to be happy, and he seemed to be once he was with his mother again."

"I hope he'll be happy too," Castle commented, Beckett echoing him.

"Alright, Dave is going to have a cow if I don't get back to him now, so come on," Rebecca said.

"Where's Mari?" Beckett then asked.

"She's playing at a friend's house," Rebecca said as they came to a field close to the stables where a man was riding around the edge slowly, another horse saddled with him. "Dave," she called out as she got up on the fence. "Here," she said in playful irritation as she handed her husband what she'd gone to get.

"Thank you gorgeous, can I have a kiss?" David Foster asked his wife.

Giving him a quick peck on the check, Rebecca then pushed his face with her hand and said, "Now give me back my horse you dink."

Laughing, David looked at Castle and Beckett as he gave the reins of the other horse to his wife and said, "Nice to see you guys again how's everyone in your family?"

"Doing pretty well," Beckett replied.

"You play polo?" Castle asked.

"Yep, part of a league," David said, swinging the mallet he'd forgotten. "You interested in playing?"

"Always have been since I first heard of the sport," Castle said, undisguised admiration in his voice.

"Then… hold on," David said. He whistled to a man walking by and called, "Can you get two more ponies saddled up and brought for them?" Looking at Beckett he asked, "You don't mind joining in?"

"Not at all," she replied as she was looking at her fiancé to see his reaction.

"By ponies," Castle said in a low tone of voice as both David and Rebecca rode around the field a little as their horses were getting antsy standing in place. "He means horses, they-"

"I know, they call them polo ponies, because they have stamina to last for a game," Beckett said with a smile. "I know a little about the sport," she said to Castle's surprised look.

"Have you ever wanted to play?" he asked her.

"Not really, but I wouldn't mind to learn a little," Beckett replied before they turned their attention to the stable hand who was coming over with two horses. "Arabians," she said under her breath.

"That's what we ride when we practice like this," David said as he and Rebecca were back at the fence. He smiled and gave them a brief explanation of the rules of the game before saying, "I won't tell them to you in detail, I'd be here all day. Plus this is just for fun." When they had come into the field he said, "So we'll just pass the ball towards our ends of the field to score. Do you think you can lean over and hit it?"

Since he was referring to her, Beckett leaned over with the mallet she'd been given, swinging at the ground. "I can manage," she said with a nod.

"Alright, try not to hit the horses, and let's start," David said, tossing the ball out to Castle.

Guessing he was going to decide which end of the field was the Fosters' goal, Castle swung down, striking the ball to Beckett who shot it ahead until he was ahead of her. Before they could get to close to the end though, Rebecca was swinging the ball away and passing it to her husband.

The four were laughing as they played, calling back and forth to one another before David scored against Castle and Beckett. He slowed down his horse and said, "You'd be pretty good; both of you."  
"I think I'd rather ride," Beckett said with a smile.

"Me too, I just help him practice," Rebecca said.

"Too bad you didn't live here Rick," David said. "You'd be a great number one."

"Since my defense skills are lacking," Castle commented. "What position do you play?"

"Number two," David commented. He got off his horse and said, "We should go, I promised Becca we'd ride after playing a little, and it's starting to get warmer."

"Thanks for letting us play," Castle said, meaning that fully.

"Not a problem, thanks for helping me practice," David said.

"We'll see you on Friday afternoon," Rebecca said, hugging Beckett since by then they were all off their horses. She then whispered to her, "You should see if he can't ride on a team in the city. He'll look pretty nice in the uniform and equipment."

Shaking her head Beckett said, "We'll see you." She waved to David as his wife took his hand and the two walked away. She felt Castle's hand on her back, and she turned to him, taking his hand before they walked in the other direction.

"What'd she say to you?" Castle asked when they were almost to his car.

"Nothing really, just mentioning that we should see if you can play in the cit…y. What?" Beckett asked, trailing off as a huge smile appeared on her fiancé's face.

"So the uniform's flattering I take it?" Castle queried. He grinned at the blush on his fiancée's cheeks and said, "I should look into it," as he opened the passenger door for her. He grabbed her hand before she got inside, and he kissed her gently saying, "And I'll try it on for you when we're alone." When he closed the door, he had to wonder if he was literally strutting around the car; he didn't want to but he couldn't help it, the flash of desire in his fiancée's eyes was too much to resist. He sighed then, understanding why she looked like that, and he got in the car, trying to forget their ride as he started the engine and pulled away from the stables.

* * *

"You okay?" Beckett was saying as she took off her Windsors sitting on the bench at the front door, watching Castle doing the same.

"Huh? Oh, yeah, just was thinking about playing," he said.

Studying her fiancé, Beckett stood up and went to him before she said, "We should probably take a shower."

"Good idea, I smell like horse," Castle commented, smelling his polo shirt he'd worn and making a slight face. He was surprised when she grabbed his hand, dragging him up the stairs. "Together?" he asked, trying to keep the eagerness out of his voice.

Beckett didn't say a word, not until they were at the shower in the bathroom. She turned to him and said, "I need you," staring into his eyes.

"Oh thank god, I thought you didn't want me to touch you," Castle said before he gathered her in his arms, relief saturating his voice.

Before he could kiss her though, Beckett stopped him saying, "Shower first, and then you can touch," as she unbuttoned his polo shirt

"What about touching in the shower?" Castle asked, voice muffled since she was pulling off the shirt.

"I don't care," Beckett said in a little impatience. She wasn't surprised when Castle quickly began to work on her clothes, having to detour him from her tight khakis she'd brought in anticipation of that morning's ride, to her blouse. When it was off, she let him work on his jeans, and at the same time she got herself naked before stepping into the shower without waiting for him. She smiled when he hurried in under the water with her, and they kissed deeply, clinging to one another. She couldn't help the moan that had escaped her lips into his mouth, she felt as if it'd been longer than just days since she'd felt his body against hers without the restriction of clothes. She deepened the kiss slightly, feeling his hands stroking her back, pressing against the small of it to bring her closer to him. Leaning against him as much as she could, she slid her nails over the back of his head before they parted to get some much needed air.

Brushing his lips over Beckett's shoulder to drift up to her neck, Castle bit here and there until he could feel her racing pulse. He let his hands wander over her body, wherever they wanted to go, and felt her moan with each pass he made. When he went back up to her lips, he pushed against her hard, hearing the groan that escaped under her breath, knowing she could feel him as they were kissing yet again.

The shower became a little of a blur for the two then, trying to caress what they could of each other, and just barely remembering to wash each other off. They were in a bit of a rush at the end, their arousal pushed higher and higher until Beckett turned off the water, and Castle followed her out, taking their time then to dry each other off before they parted with a kiss.

Stepping out to the bedroom, Becket could feel her fiancé's gaze on her back. She went to the bed, standing at her side, watching the intensity in his blue eyes as he walked around to her. Biting her lower lip, she wrapped her arms around him when he was close enough for her to do so, and kissed him slowly yet sensuously. She felt his hands at her towel wrapped around her, and when she pulled back to look at him she smiled and whispered, "Fuck me Rick."

His heart suddenly thudding in his chest at her words, Castle took her lips in another kiss, but that one much quicker. He pressed his forehead against hers once they parted and murmured against her lips as he was pulling apart the towel, "I adore you love."

Beckett slipped out from his arms since he was holding her towel, and she lay back on the bed, watching as he pushed the sheets over the edge to the floor. She propped herself up on her pillows before he came to her, and she waited for him to put a pillow below her hips before she parted her legs to him, biting her lower lip as he lay on top of her. "Can I make a request?" she asked. When her fiancé nodded, she whispered to him, and the next second he was kissing her, crushing her lips with his own which she took as his assent.

Feeling Beckett clutching at him tightly, Castle groaned against her before he suddenly pulled away abruptly, looking into her eyes. "I need-" he started to say as he felt the heat of his arousal raging out of control looking into her half lidded eyes. But she reached up to him, kissing him hard as she reached in between them, grasping his erection and making him forget what he'd been about to say. With a slight grunt, he moved with her then, and slid slowly into her body, his groan feeling like it lasted a lot longer than it did. But it was one of relief, and when he pulled away to breathe he helped her, taking her left leg to perch her ankle on his shoulder as she was wrapping her right leg around his waist. "You…" he said before trailing off on an exhale of breath.

Beckett couldn't blame him for that, she could feel him deep and hard, the sensation making her body burn, and with his first thrust she was nearly digging her nails into his arms. She was quick to follow him though, moving her hips at the same pace he was, feeling like she could smile as he followed her request of going slowly before speeding up to the letter. She reached up with her hands, cupping his cheeks as his eyes closed and he seemed to be trying to withstand how she felt. She shivered once when his head turned and he pressed a kiss to her right thumb before taking that digit with his mouth. When his tongue flicked against the skin she shook hard, the shock of that touch sending a literal explosion through her body. It set off an ache at her breasts and where they were coupled together, and she thrust against him a little faster than he was.

Leaning down enough, Castle took her lips with his own, before he felt her moving up against him. Having to pull back, he broke off the kiss before seeing that she had pushed herself onto her arms, leaning against them as she seemed to be trying to look between them. He tried to move away from her a little, to allow her to, and groaned heavily as he caught sight of their bodies together. Their hips smacked, withdrawing before meeting yet again, and he was almost hypnotized by the easy motion though it was rough, both of them moving in sync again. He was startled from his stare as Beckett's hand came into his view, and he watched as she managed to slip it in between them. Her first touch to her clit he felt as well as she immediately tightened around him in response, and he slammed into her. Liking that feeling, he suddenly moved in that way, hard and without making it very paced, just literally ramming into her as many times he could manage. He could feel the sweat on his body, and he looked down to his fiancée, seeing her hands were both above her head, clutching at the pillow underneath her as she raced to follow his lead, the sound of their bodies meeting almost seeming to echo in the room.

Beckett could feel Castle deep inside her, his hips pressing against her so tightly she wondered why there wasn't more friction when he moved away. But there was enough where they were coupled, and everything in her was literally pulsating, feeling as if it was on fire. She moved against him hard, as hard as he was moving, and she bit at her lower lip roughly before he abruptly slowed down. Her eyes flew open as he took her leg off his shoulder, putting it with the other around his waist, and she was quick as he leaned down, kissing her deeply. They weren't bothering to match their pace, instead they were rough in their kiss, and she arched her back as his right hand brushed against her breast. That seemed to set something off between them, as their bodies began to speed up with one another, making her throw her head back, moaning his name repeatedly as the buildup of the feeling of them moving together meant that same, rough friction from shortly before. "Rick…" she begged him, not quite sure what she was asking him for.

"Tell me to stop," Castle told her, his voice straining slightly as he kissed around her neck and then went down to her breasts, seeing her shake her head just before he did. He heard her moan in response as he began to suckle at her nipple, flicking his tongue against the taunt nub over and over again. Her fingers were threading through his hair before raking down his scalp as he moved to her other mound, making his entire body shudder in reaction. He could feel how she was moving with him, how slick she was with her desire, and he was unable to stop himself. He didn't try to slow down or delay or stop, wanting to push her, needing to bring her over the edge with him as he was close, his body aching with pleasure.

Clutching at Castle's shoulders, Becket tried to get some kind of handle on time, feeling as if they had been moving together for a large amount of it. But he suddenly jerked down against her, hitting her clit directly, and she completely lost it, arching her back roughly as she cried out his name repeatedly. Her fingers were growing white on his back, holding onto him as a few moments later, he was thrusting haphazardly groaning her name against her neck, and she could feel his release, clutching him to her even tighter though she wasn't sure that was possible as she felt herself skirting the edge of passing out. She was unaware of how long it took before they were stopping, but finally they relaxed, slumped to the bed and she turned her head to press a kiss to his temple. "Hmm, I needed that," she murmured against his skin, feeling herself throbbing around him in the aftermath.

"Really?" Castle asked, looking up at her.

About to reply to that, Beckett then gave him a glare, not surprised when in response to that, he leaned down to kiss her. She hugged him tightly around the neck as she parted her lips to his searching tongue, running her hands up and down the back of his head, slowly, deliberately. "So you did too it looks like," she teased him.

"For a while; since we woke up," Castle admitted before he cleared that up for her. "Try riding a horse like that."

"Or play polo," Beckett commented wryly. "Though you seemed to have a lot of fun. You should look into it back home."  
"I'll give it a shot, you're sure you're not urging me to do that so you can see me in the gear and uniform?" Castle asked. He laughed when she pinched his side, but soon cut himself off by kissing her slowly, deliberately. When they parted he was about to speak before a noise kept him from doing so. "So, breakfast?" he commented.

Smiling, since his stomach had been rumbling, Beckett nodded and said, "It might be brunch," glancing at the clock. "Oh, no, it's breakfast."

"I'll be back," Castle said. But instead of moving away from her, he brushed his lips against hers and then murmured, "I love you Kate."

"Hmm, you said that already," Beckett said, moving her hand to his cheek, caressing it with the backs of her fingers. "But go, once you leave it doesn't mean we're done."

"It doesn't?" Castle asked, perking up at that since he could tell she was serious. When she nodded once, he kissed her deeply, but made it quick before he carefully withdrew from her, and brushed his thumb against her lower lip before he threw on his pajama pants and left the room saying, "Don't go anywhere."

Beckett shook her head at that, and laid her head back on the pillows behind her, looking up at the pattern of sunlight shining on the ceiling from the ocean outside. She glanced around the room and remembered the day before when they had arrived, Castle showing her all the changes to the house he'd had started since they'd talked about it two months before. Their room had been repainted, the walls now all a very pale blue, the trim repainted a slightly brighter white. She loved it, as it felt a little like she was looking at the sky early in the morning. He had even gotten a new mattress for the bed; the kind she liked; and towels in the same blue as the walls in the bathroom for just her to use. Julia's room had been painted, a bright sky blue their daughter had picked out and she knew the little girl would absolutely love it.

What had surprised her the most was the fact that her father's room was ready, painted and with furniture Castle had told Beckett could be temporary if he wanted something else. There was also a key on one of the dressers, since he was going to let Jim be able to come whenever he wanted. She smiled to herself, remembering what she had told him when he'd asked if her dad would like the room. With the walls painted in his favorite deep green color, she wasn't sure how he could hate it there.

That turned her thoughts to her fiancé again, and she sighed as she remembered their ride and the kisses he'd given her as they'd let their horses take a break. She traced her lips slowly, carefully, and remembered his hungrier ones once they'd reached home, and she felt him inside of her, moving in her, filling her deeply and making her feel his desire for her the entire time; from beginning to end. Beckett bit at her lower lip once, and then realized that her fingers were stroking her abdomen. She looked down at them, and glanced to the doorway, trying to hear if Castle was coming back. But there were no footsteps, so she lowered her hand, brushing against her clit.

Breathing in deeply at that first touch since it reverberated through her entire body, Beckett let herself start to rub up and down carefully, closing her eyes to better enjoy the sensation. She spread her legs a little wider then, imagining Castle with her, touching her and kissing her repeatedly, not having to work too hard to do that since he had done exactly that not long before.

It was at that moment that Castle returned; a tray in his hands with coffee and strawberries on them. When he caught sight of Beckett, he nearly dropped everything to the floor when he realized what she was doing, and he hurried to set the tray on the nearest dresser. He then went around to sit next to her on the edge of the bed, not too surprised when she didn't react to him. He was tempted to touch her, but held back, wanting to watch her for as long as he could.

Beckett wasn't aware she had an audience, until her eyes fluttered open, and she gasped slightly, shocked to see him suddenly there when she had been fantasizing about him so intently. "You-" she began to say.

"Don't stop on my account," Castle commented.

Beckett didn't reply to that, but then smiled and moved, pushing the pillows aside before she sat up. "Off," she said, tugging on the waist band of his pants.

Castle was a little startled at that, but did as she indicated, coming back to her naked, and he was about to reach for he when she put her hands on his chest, holding him away from her. "No?" he asked, confused as to what she wanted.

"Not yet," Beckett said simply with a smile. "Let me watch."

Gritting his teeth together at that, Castle nodded once, and then moved so he was fully on the bed on his knees. His fiancée touching him to help him, he grasped his erection in his hand, and moved it up and down once. It wasn't really a surprise when that action took him back to all the times he'd imagined Beckett, in many different ways and wanting him as much as he wanted her. The relief was that he didn't have to imagine it, it was real. "Touch yourself Kate," he urged her, his voice a little distorted from the pleasure he was doing to himself.

Beckett nearly laughed at the expression on Castle's face when she immediately started to finger herself at his suggestion, his eyes wide as he watched her. But she was feeling pleasure again, and she couldn't help it, leaning over to kiss him deeply before they parted.

The room was quiet, only the sounds of their heavy breathing and greedy kisses filling the empty space. They were carefully watching one another, wanting to make sure they were together when they finally got off.

"Tell me…" Castle said.

Nodding, Beckett finally stopped stroking herself, and took Castle's free hand off of her breast before straddling him. She rocked her body back and forth on his erection, until finally she tensed, shaking a few times as he thrust up in her in immediate response. She moaned a few times with each wave of pleasure, the intensity of her orgasm not as much as the last bout, but it was enough for her; able to tell it was enough for her fiancé too as she felt his climax readily.

"Watching you love, you're pure sex you know," Castle commented when they'd stopped moving, breathing hard.

"Pure sex?" Beckett asked, shaking her hair past her shoulders.

"Yep, which doesn't make sense does it?" Castle asked.

"No," Beckett said, shaking her head with a laugh. She kissed him then quickly and then said, "But as long as you love me and want me just like that, I could care less. And now, I'm hungry, especially after that." She kissed him then, and then went over to the headboard, watching as he straightened out his pillows before bringing the tray to her. When he handed her her mug of coffee, she smiled and said, "Thank you," as he'd made a heart in the foam, just barely visible by then. "So I'm guessing you were thinking of me downstairs while I was busy thinking of you here."

"I just couldn't touch myself… well, I could, but, not there," Castle said, thinking a moment. "But you seemed to enjoy yourself."

"Immensely, I was remembering how we were together before, and how good it felt to have you inside of me," Beckett murmured, looking at the copy of the _Hamptons Report_ he'd brought with him.

Pausing to take a drink, Castle studied his fiancée and said, "So no more hesitation."

"No more, as many times as possible is fine with me," Beckett said, glancing at him out of the corner of her eye.

"Another reason why I love you Kate," Castle said, leaning over then and kissing her deeply on the lips.

"Hmm, glad I can make you happy," Beckett said with a smile before they went back to their breakfast. She set aside the newspaper, the cover story about the funeral for Officer Thornton and Carlotta taking away some of her joy in the moment. She turned her attention to her fiancé, feeding him as he did the same to her until they finished. As she got up to get changed into her bathing suit while he left with their breakfast items, she couldn't help remembering Monday, when she'd had to face another funeral for someone from the 12th before Isabella's mother was buried.

* * *

_Walking out into her bedroom, Beckett smiled at her fiancé and their daughter, who were sitting on the edge of her bed waiting for her. "We should get going," she said as she held her hand out to Julia._

_"I wish you could come with me to see Alexis learn sitar and swim too," the little girl said when they were at the door._

_"Me too but, we'll see you later this afternoon at Castle's, he's making dinner tonight," Beckett said, putting on her shoes. She smiled as Julia reached up and touched her citation bars on her uniform blazer and she took the little girl's hand, kissing it before she took her hat that Julia had been holding for her. "I want you to have fun with Alexis okay?" she told her seriously._

_"Yeah, I hope you do too Mommy," Julia said. She cupped her mother's cheeks and said, "I hope you have fun with Castle even if you are sad now."_

_"I will, and I'll have fun with you tonight too, since I don't have to work tomorrow we can watch something special," Beckett said. She hugged Julia tightly to her and whispered, "Have fun, and tell me about what happens at Padma's okay?" before she shared a kiss with her._

_"Alexis and I will say," Julia said, looking at her sister with a smile. "Do we go now?" she asked._

_"Yep, as long as you're ready, we can go," Alexis said. She picked up her sitar case, watching her sister say goodbye to Castle._

_"Like your mom said, have a ton of fun, and see if maybe you want to play one of those when you're older," he was telling Julia._

_"Maybe," the little girl said with a smile. She shared a kiss with Castle before he set her down and she said, "Take care of Mommy?"_

_"I always do," Castle assured her. He put his hand on Beckett's back after they'd watched their daughters walk down the hall before going out of sight. He closed the door and asked, "I need to go?"_

_"Yeah, it's starting in twenty minutes," Beckett said. "I was hoping never to have to do this again."_

_"I'll scope the area somehow before you get there, make sure it's okay," Castle said._

_"No, I don't think I'll get shot again," Beckett said, unable to help smiling slightly at his somber tone. "I just didn't want to have to go to another funeral for someone from the station."_

_Nodding, Castle leaned down and brushed his lips across his fiancée's before pulling back. "I'll see you there," he told her simply, staring into her eyes. When she nodded he left, hearing the door close behind him and hoping she'd be alright._

_Sighing, Beckett waited a few more minutes, before she left, holding her hat under her arm. She smiled at Mrs. Parker who came into the building, not surprised that a few other residents in the lobby were watching her. By then the news had broken that Bracken had ordered the mother of his illegitimate baby killed, tried to kill Isabella himself and that he had had Officer Thornton killed by the officer's partner he had bribed. Luckily her involvement in the senator's death hadn't been leaked to the public, so she knew they were only looking at her since they'd found out she worked with Thornton. She stepped outside, and spotted Esposito driving LT's squad car, the officer himself sitting in the passenger seat. "Hey LT," she said as she got in, squeezing his shoulder as she sat._

_Nodding, the officer didn't reply, and the trip to the cemetery was silent before they parked outside among the other squad cars; some of them not even the 12th's. When they got to where Thornton was going to be laid to rest, they went to Captain Gates who was standing with Thornton's wife and son to give their condolences._

_"Kate," Castle said quietly, managing to catch up with his fiancée as she was walking behind Esposito and LT a little. "Ryan's around here somewhere, the area's cleared; he and Javi were remembering the last time we were here."_

_"I'll have to thank them later," Beckett said before they reached the officer's wife. "Joy," she said, taking the woman's hands. "I am so-" She had just been about to say she felt so sorry about not being able to prevent her husband's death, when the woman was hugging her to her surprise._

_"I thought you might be feeling guilty Beckett," Joy said with a slight smile that trembled at her lips when she pulled away. "But you shouldn't, Geoff did his job, and he couldn't let anything happen to that baby. I needed to tell you that he wouldn't want you blaming yourself, it was Bracken, and everything is because of Bracken."_

_Nodding, as she knew the woman was right, Beckett looked down at the woman's two and a half year old son, smiling a little and saying, "How is he?"_

_"Alright, I don't think he understands what's going on, but he's okay," Joy said, nodding. "Thank you for coming, and you too Castle, Geoff told me a lot about you."_

_"I wish we were meeting under better circumstances," Castle murmured. He then followed Beckett over to some empty seats near Ryan and Esposito, talking with them before they heard the sound of the band playing, and they turned to see the rider-less horse being led in front of the hearse. He reached over to Beckett, brushing against her gently to see if she was okay, when she smiled briefly at him before turning her attention back to the funeral._

_Beckett breathed in deeply as she watched LT and the other officers that Thornton had been friends with act as pallbearers and LT also spoke a eulogy before the casket was lowered into the ground. It was then she took the risk, reaching to her fiancée and taking his hand, not caring anyone would be able to see their hands clasped together tightly as they gave each other what comfort they could from such a simple gesture._

* * *

_"What do you want?" the older man said gruffly as he opened the apartment door._

_"Dad, please," the young woman walking up behind him said. "Let them in, they worked with Joseph."_

_"Are they here to-" the man began to say._

_"Dad, enough, go get them something to drink, please," the woman said. "Detectives, come in."_

_"I'm sorry, but we wanted to see you," Beckett said, since she was in front of the boys and Castle._

_"I'm surprised, no one else has," the woman; Gordon's wife; said with a sigh, rubbing the small of her back._

_"They're a little unsure if you'd want visitors Lynn," Ryan said._

_"Please, sit down, I know you don't have time, the woman who you were protecting is going to be buried soon isn't she?" Lynn asked._

_"We have enough time," Beckett said simply. "But first, we started a collection for your baby, yours and Joy and Thornton's son," she said as she handed an envelope with her. "It's not charity, but an early baby shower gift."_

_"Thank you," Lynn said, tears appearing in her eyes. "Is… is she-" she started to say before there was a quiet knock on the door._

_"I'll get it," Esposito offered. He went over and looked out, looking at the others in surprise before opening the door and stepping aside to let Joy and her son in._

_"Joy?" Beckett asked as Lynn placed her hands protectively over her abdomen._

_"I came here to see you Lynn, to see if you were okay," Joy said softly. "To see if you need any help at all."_

_"No, no, I'm fine, I… thank you," Lynn whispered as the woman hugged her._

_Sharing a look with Castle, Beckett breathed out a little; having been unsure of the reason Joy had come to see the wife of her husband's killer. But as she watched them sit down together on a couch in the corner of the living room, she guessed they would both be okay, going over to join them, asking about the baby._

_Watching his fiancée as they had drinks of iced tea Lynn's father had brought out, Castle missed what Ryan was saying as he watched Beckett place her hand on Ethan; Thornton's son's head, talking to him seriously. He breathed out as she smiled; making the little boy do the same before letting him look at her hat. He felt that she was alright, but hoped their break from the case would be enough to help them both get back to normal._

* * *

_Walking inside the hotel room after Manuel Ortiz had let her and Castle in, Beckett smiled widely when she saw Isabella on her aunt's lap and said, "Hello Madeline, I hope you don't mind, I brought my partner, Richard Castle with me to see Isabella before you leave for Boston."_

_"You helped her protect my sister and niece?" Madeline asked. She smiled slightly when Castle nodded and said, "Thank you for coming to the funeral."_

_"I had to attend," Castle said simply. "How is she doing?"_

_"Oh, just fine, she's a wonderful baby," Madeline said, kissing her niece's temple as the baby shifted in her arms. "Would you like to hold her?" she asked Beckett._

_"Of course," she said, taking the baby as Madeline shifted her to her. She smiled down at Isabella as the little girl looked up at her with wide eyes. "Hey," she said softly, going over to the window. "I see you remember me," she murmured, the baby taking her pendant in her little fist. She took it out of her hand, letting Isabella hold onto her index finger before looking up at Castle who had walked over to her._

_"Ms. Spencer, Mr. Ortiz, Beckett and I have something we'd like to ask," he then said when his fiancée nodded to him. When he saw the two looking at him questioningly he quickly said, "We'd like to be able to keep in touch with you, to see how Isabella does as she grows up."_

_"And if you ever need any help, we would be glad to assist you in any way," Beckett said. "Both Isabella and you."_

_"That's very nice of you to offer," Madeline said, her husband nodding in agreement. "But this isn't out of guilt is it?"_

_"I would be lying if I said no," Beckett said. "But we really do want to make sure Isabella will be okay."_

_"You have daughters, both of you?" Ortiz asked. When Castle and Beckett nodded, he wrote down something on a pad of paper the hotel provided, and at his wife's nod he gave it to him. "Our address and Maddy's number."_

_"Okay, this is my number, and this is Beckett's," Castle said, going to the paper and writing them down._

_"Call if you need anything," Beckett urged them as she handed Isabella back to her aunt. "We'll help if we can."_

_After Castle had held Isabella for a little as they spoke with the baby's aunt and uncle, he and Beckett left, heading back to his place which they found empty. He followed her into his room, watching as she set her hat down on the dresser before glancing into the mirror above it at her reflection. "Kate?" he asked carefully, going over to her._

_"Yeah, I need to get this off," Beckett said, reaching up to unbutton her blazer. When she had it open, she was about to take it off when she felt her fiancé behind her to help her slide it off her arms._

_Watching her, Castle didn't say a word, just relieved to see the tension that was obvious in her body disappear as she unbuttoned and removed her shirt before taking off her undershirt, belt and then trousers, taking her hair down from its bun. He tossed the clothes she handed him on his bed to fold later, and went to her, taking her blouse and helping her into that before he helped with her jeans, closing the fly once she had them on._

_Though she knew that he was aware there was no need to help her, Beckett couldn't help but feel a little better with his assistance. It was almost as if he were taking some of her stress from her with his actions. When she was dressed, she wasn't surprised when he ran his hands down her shoulders and her arms before taking her by the waist. He leaned down, and kissed her, gently, softly, and she felt there was nothing sexual in him helping her, it was only to be there for her, and she wrapped her arms around him tightly, kissing him a little harder to thank him as best she could._

* * *

"Ready to go? Kate?" Castle called as he walked out into the bedroom to find his fiancée staring into the fireplace.

"Sorry, just… thinking," Beckett said, turning to him as she tied her bathing suit cover-up closed. "I'm ready."

"So I'm thinking we should swim for a little, and then have those sandwiches we bought from the bakery for lunch and then after we can… We didn't plan for that," Castle said.

"We'll see how things go," Beckett said, smiling at the expression on his face. She squeezed his hand once they had stepped outside, and going to the pool she took off her cover-up before saying, "I forgot… sunscreen," in exasperation before trailing off as Castle was holding the bottle in his hand. "You know I have spray right?"

"Oh I know, I just thought this would work better," Castle said. "You know, a more concentrated sunscreen than mist."

"Sure," Beckett said, rolling her eyes though she was smiling slightly. She took the bottle from him and spread it over her arms and legs before handing it to her fiancé, turning on the lounge chair she'd chosen since it was partially in the shade.

"I don't think that'll work love," Castle said. "Your bikini is in the way." At her look he gave her one of his own saying, "You didn't do your chest, didn't even put your ring on your necklace."

Wrinkling her nose, Beckett first moved her engagement ring onto her necklace, and then turned around, untying the top and bottom of her bikini top. "Go ahead," she said simply as he didn't do anything for what felt like a long time.

"Turn around," Castle said. When she started to say his name he quickly pointed out, "I put it on your back last I'll calm down."

Sighing, Beckett turned around and watched him start to rub the sunscreen around her shoulders before sliding to her breasts. She bit her lower lip to bite back a reaction, but wasn't able to cover up her moan. "There's something I don't get," she started to say.

"I don't discriminate about size," Castle said quickly, knowing already what she was going to ask. Since he'd done her upper chest by then, he quickly discarded the bottle and began to rub her breasts with the sunscreen he'd gotten on his hands. "And they really are fantastic breasts," he said. "I'm not kidding," he said when he glanced up at her since he got no reaction to that, seeing she looked a little doubtful at his sincerity.

Beckett nodded slightly since she'd been able to tell he'd been serious then, and she told him, "Better do the back now."

"Why?" Castle asked, though he was long since finished covering her front. When his fiancée jerked her chin to his groin, he smirked at her and said, "That should tell you I'm serious."

"Hurry up, I did want to swim," Beckett chided him jokingly as she turned around. She sighed as he rubbed the lotion into her back, also managing to get out a few kinks that had built up in her with the case, and she felt fully relaxed as she put her bikini top on. But she shook the urge to lie down on the chair and soak up the sun as her fiancé began to cover himself in sunscreen. She took the bottle, and worked the white cream over his back for him before she slipped out of his grasp and went to the steps.

"Come on, don't be prissy," Castle said. He laughed when his fiancée glared at him slightly and said, "Come in over here, the water is warm."

Beckett walked around the pool, and watched as Castle jumped into the water in a cannonball, trying to pull back away from the water. She was unsuccessful and he splashed her, but it was alright, since as he'd said, the water was warm. She sat on the edge and sighed as her legs moved through the water, feeling as if she were being caressed by the heat. "Nice cannonball, you know in Germany they have a competition for that, or had, I'm not sure if they still do it," she said when her fiancé came up to her.

"Interesting, but I don't think I'd be able to compete, I just do it for fun," he told her, taking her hand that was caressing his hair. "Come here Kate," he said, suddenly aroused as he watched her above him.

"I don't think we should," Beckett said, stopping him and making him sigh in disappointment. "Sorry, I want to, badly, but, they're all going to be here tomorrow…"

"It's okay, you're right about that," Castle said, conceding the point. "But come here anyways, there's something else we can do here."

Beckett; already guessing what that was, slipped into the water, her hair cascading down her shoulders as she went under, her ponytail holder tossed to the side of the pool. She swam to the steps, and when she stepped up onto the shallow end she turned to see her fiancé following her. "You're right, nothing wrong with swimming here," she teased him as she sat on the top step.

"You know, I realized what I wanted to say when I told you you were pure sex earlier," Castle said, going on his knees in front of her on the bottom step. "You're a goddess," he told her, his voice husky on the last word.

"Of what, sex?" Beckett asked though he'd told her that before.

"No, you're the complete package of a woman, I would say like Parvati," Castle said, thinking for a moment.

"I don't think you should be comparing me to a specific goddess, just say you think I am a goddess, as in-" Beckett started to say.

"You're worthy of worship," Castle said. "I know I've said that, but I mean it." He saw the sudden realization of what his fiancée had said about herself on her face and smiled saying, "You were just correcting what I said, but I stand by that, you're worthy of worship and it's what I was doing earlier."

"Thank you for that by the way," Beckett said. "It's my hope we can repeat that soon."

"You're giving me some really mixed signals love, you either want me or you want to tease me," Castle said. He stood up, looking her over before saying, "Or most likely both."  
Beckett stood up in response to that, and was going to step out of the pool before she was suddenly being picked up around the waist. "Castle! Put me down!" she cried, unable to help laughing just before he fell backwards and they went under the water. When they'd resurfaced she splashed him in the face, and dove under the water as he went to grab for her. Swimming towards the deep end, she came back up for air, and cried out as she was pulled under.

When they were both above the water, Castle stood in the middle of the pool and wrapped his arms around his fiancée, holding her to him as they began to kiss hungrily. Her arms were wrapped tightly around his neck, and he could feel her desire in the way she drew her tongue along his. When they parted for air he murmured, "Do me a favor?"

"I'm not swimming topless," Beckett said. She couldn't help laugh and kiss him when a frustrated expression flashed across his face in response and then told him, "We might push it too far doing that Rick."

Sighing in acquiescence, Castle followed her to the other end of the pool where they held onto the side and tread the water as he leaned over to kiss her simply. "Something I wanted to ask, when we get married are you going to keep calling me Castle?"

"I've thought about it," Beckett said. "But I think I should call you Rick, though that doesn't seem right. So I figured what would be best would be just to call you whatever I feel like. And with that, if I call you Rick, pay attention to my tone."

"Like right now, you said it twice and I feel no compunction to run with you under my arm to the bed in there," Castle said, nodding to the door next to the fireplace and TV.

"You know I almost forgot about that room," Beckett commented.

"Another question, going to call me anything else?" Castle asked.

"You should have just asked outright for an endearment," Beckett said with a smile since she knew he was serious. "And I've thought about that as well."

"And?" Castle asked, wondering what she was thinking as she pushed away from the edge. He was quick to follow her to the steps on the other side and said, "Something… I won't like?" he guessed as he sat with her on the top step.

"No, I'd like to call you love too," Beckett said. She smiled when one appeared on Castle's face immediately and she asked, "That's okay with you?"

"Definitely, I tried to imagine once what you could call me, but nothing ever really worked in my mind," Castle said. As she cupped his cheek then, he leaned over, kissing her gently before they parted.

"I thought you'd think it was a less masculine endearment, love," Beckett said, testing the word for the first time. It felt slightly odd on her tongue, but when Castle kissed her firmly in response to it she smiled inwardly and kissed him back before pulling him into the pool where they began to swim back and forth. They raced one another, wrestled a little together; which had been Castle's idea that she'd agreed with only because she found herself by then wanting to be close to her fiancé; and finally just tread the water at the deep end, leaning their heads in close and sharing gentle kisses as they spoke while holding onto the edge. Finally though, she led him out of the pool, and they swam to the steps before going back to the lounge chair they'd been at earlier.

About to join Beckett as she lay down, Castle laughed as he dodged her halfhearted kick against him and said, "What?"

"Get your own chair," she teased him. She smiled when he gave her a look and then said, "Or get lunch; either one."

"You're hungry?" Castle asked sitting on the end of the chair as he waited for her to adjust the back before sitting up slightly.

"Wrestling with your future husband in a pool will do that to you," Beckett said wryly. She laughed when he came over to her at that, and she wrapped her arms loosely around his neck before they kissed deeply. It was only one kiss, but enough to arouse her and make her grasp at his ass quickly as he stood up.

"You confuse me a lot of the time Kate," Castle teased her; seeing her cheeks flushed slightly as he turned to look at her. "Stay or go?"

"Go, I wasn't kidding about being hungry," Beckett said, watching him go after throwing his towel around his shoulders. She bit her lower lip as she thought about how the day was still relatively young, and then relaxed back on the chair, closing her eyes and letting the sun's warmth make her drowsy. Since she had been so busy with her fiancé for a large part of the day, she wasn't too surprised when she dozed off eventually, only the sudden shock of ice against her leg making her jerk awake. "Castle! What-" she started to say before she saw his surprise.

"Sorry, I thought you were just joking," he said. "Should I have made drinks?"

"Yes, but next time make sure I'm not asleep before you do that," Beckett said, taking the glass. "I didn't know you knew how the make frozen margaritas too."

"Picked it up in the Yucatan, took Alexis and my mother there when she was young," Castle commented. "We stayed at a resort and the bartender at the beach was a genius with these, taught me after I paid him for the lessons, which I suggested to him because he wasn't really supposed to do that."

"Mango?" Beckett asked with a smile after taking a sip. "That would explain the color and the mangoes you had in the fridge. Thank you," she said, raising the glass to him as he sat in the chair next to her. She got up to sit on the edge across from him, watching him drag over the table between their chairs. "So, I took a sip already, but I think we should still toast the beginning of our vacation. _Salud_."

" _Salud_ , love," Castle said, tapping his glass against hers. He then leaned over once they'd drunk a little, kissing her gently on the lips. They seemed to both freeze as they could taste the fruit on each other's lips, and he carefully deepened the kiss, but only enough so they could feel the pressure of each other's lips as warmth through the ice of the drink before he pulled away.

Breathing in deeply, Beckett said, "We should eat." When he nodded, she nearly laughed as she could tell that he was still in a state of half arousal, but what kept her from doing that was her own trouble facing that as well. She tried to ignore it then, bringing up their daughters, speculating on what they were doing right that second.

Castle went along with that subject and they talked about their family and the next day when they would arrive to spend the holiday weekend with them. They shared a few more kisses the same as the first, but they lingered, neither of them ever able to shake their desire as they went through lunch.

* * *

Breaching the surface of the water a few hours after lunch, Castle was a little startled to see his fiancée standing at the edge of the pool, her towel wrapped around her waist. "Enough of swimming?" he asked, going over to the steps.

"You don't have to stop," Beckett said, watching him get out. "I was just going to tell you that I might go inside for a _siesta_."

"When we go to Spain will we have to take those?" Castle asked.

"Not really, it's up to you," Beckett said. "And if you're going to ask, my dad sometimes does and doesn't, it depends on how he's feeling." She turned to walk to the house, and glanced over her shoulder to see her fiancé following. "Really, you don't have to come." She was startled in the next second when Castle was grabbing her, pulling her back against his chest and nibbling at her ear before he took her back to the pool. "Wait, I said-" she began as she tried to slip her arm from his grasp.

"One thing," Castle interrupted her. "And I'm coming."

Sucking in a deep breath at that; as she knew it was an entendre; Beckett followed him to the outdoor shower, letting him take her towel off. As he was doing that, she was resolute, removing her top and then her bottoms before catching Castle's gaze. When he froze momentarily, she took the chance to open the front of his trunks enough, smirking when he grunted in response to her hand slipping in to grasp his erection.

"Am I drunk?" Castle managed to ask when she let him go after stroking him a few times.

"No, I'm not either," Beckett said. She was taken aback when his expression changed, and the desire seemed to overwhelm his surprise while he backed her up against the wall behind the shower. "Am I?" she whispered as he leaned down to kiss her once his trunks were discarded with her bikini.

Castle didn't reply, instead he reached back, turning on the water while he kissed her at the same time. Though he was largely tempted to make that kiss more intense, he slowly pulled away and moved her to the shower, watching her close her eyes as the water flowed over her.

Since she couldn't see him, Beckett felt Castle stepping up to her and she placed her hands carefully on his chest. She then let one descend, taking his erection in hand again. She heard him gasping for air as she couldn't really stroke him, only rub against him here and there. A cry left her lips before she could stop herself, and she was suddenly up against the wall, her fiancé ramming directly into her as he'd picked her up. She moaned then in response, before realizing he was talking. Leaning over to hear him better, she could hear his apology that he was saying over and over, and she leaned down, kissing the top of his head. " _You know you said you were coming, you'd better stick to your word Rick_ ," she whispered to him.

Going tense at that, Castle moved his head from her neck and looked at her, seeing she was serious which set off a shudder of pleasure through him. He kissed her then and roughly as he began to move inside of her. Groaning heavily at that first thrust, he sped up, knowing without her needing to ask that it needed to be rough. They'd spent a lot of time after lunch avoiding their desire, and he was tired of doing that, wanting to give in to it. As he felt her using her legs wrapped around him for leverage, he hissed when her next thrust was a lot more forceful, and their hips smacked wetly together, splashing the running water all over them. He went back to her lips then since he'd ended the kiss to breathe, and they began sharing short, yet intense ones before she moved him back.

As her fiancé proceeded to kiss her neck and then shoulders, Becket was feeling him rigid inside of her, moaning every time his body entered her again. She squeezed her arms tighter around his neck when he abruptly squeezed her ass in his hands hard, breathing hard and feeling the water slip past her lips and into her mouth. She wasn't able to respond vocally to that; instead she made Castle tilt his head up to her, kissing him so hard she nearly broke the skin of his lips. She could feel his slight pain as his rhythm broke before she was undulating her hips to try and bring him back with her.

Getting back to how he'd been moving before, Castle lost himself in his fiancée, which was never that hard to do. He followed her unsaid commands to kiss her where she directed him, and as she kept reacting to him, he was compelled to repeat said actions a few times. As was usually the case, he had no idea how long they were moving together, pleasuring each other the best they could considering their position. But when Beckett began to falter in a few thrusts, and then that kept happening, he went to her ear, kissing and nipping at the lobe once before he whispered to her, " _I need you to come now my love, you're asking for too much and I don't think I could… last… you're too fucking good_."

Breathing out harshly; as he'd never commanded her using those words before; Beckett snapped, and she dug her nails into the backs of his shoulders, almost breaking the skin before she was arching her back, moving back and forth in the little space she had between him and the wall, moaning his name as she begged him to join her in almost the same way he'd worded it to her.

His heart beating rapidly in his chest at the way she sounded though she wasn't really rough in language, Castle thrust twice more before he followed her demand, more than ready to do so as she felt incredibly tight and wet around him in her release. He groaned her name once before he lost all pretense at his rhythm, and just concentrated on how they felt together, her body trying to get all she could out of his orgasm. He was fast and a little rough he knew, but also knew she didn't mind it since she was kissing his cheeks and lips wildly as she moaned. He thrust hard at the end once, twice and then twice more in quick succession before he stopped, and almost leaned against her and the wall in the sudden exhaustion that overwhelmed him.

Though she was tired as well, Beckett was careful to help him before he could slide to the ground; though she knew he would do so without caring. She got back down and turned off the water before picking up their towels, wondering why her legs wobbled as much as they were. As she was bent over, she jumped when his hand suddenly grabbed the small of her back before sliding down to her ass as she straightened up. "Not here," she said, smiling at him as she realized it wasn't a touch done to arouse her again, but to come down from their love making. She threw her towel around her naked body, urging him to do the same with his before she took her bikini and led the way to the house while he grabbed his trunks.

Castle made her toss their clothes into the small laundry room inside the sink there once inside, and took the lead that time up to their room. Since by then they were mostly dried off, he tossed off his towel and jumped onto the bed, lying down in the middle with a huge exhalation of air.

"Fucking me in the sun after a margarita can be tiring," Beckett teased him, climbing on top of him and draping her upper body over his chest.

"The drink had nothing to do with it, I didn't want to stop," Castle said, wrapping one arm around her. He stroked her bare back, shuddering in pleasure as her skin was smooth to his still wrinkled fingers, and he said, "You're hard to resist."

"Apparently, you were a little R-rated in your language out there," Beckett said. She was surprised when Castle sat up at that and looked at her fiancé questioningly as he stared at her.

"You didn't like me talking like that?" he asked, studying her closely.

"I… did," Beckett said slowly.

"Would you mind if I pushed it a little with that?" Castle asked.

Biting her lower lip, Beckett looked away from him until she smiled and said, "I normally would say no, you're a pervert but… I don't think I've ever felt so… aroused hearing you telling me to come. So go ahead, but just don't overuse it."

"It? There are a lot more words I know, the kind you keep in the bedroom," Castle commented. "But yeah, keeping them few and far between makes them that much more exciting, like when you talk about your clit… see?" he told her when she trembled under his hand that was on the small of his back.

Pushing on his shoulder, Beckett then brought him back to her for a kiss, and she sighed when he suddenly turned them around to lay her on her back, and she wrapped her arms around him, holding him close to keep him with her even as they parted for air. "I think I'll enjoy hearing what comes out of your mouth a little more now," she teased him. "But I would ask one thing, one request."

"What's that love?" Castle asked.

"Only when you're fucking me," Beckett stipulated. She would have laughed at the way Castle nodded his head yes eagerly, but in the next instant he was taking her lips with his, and she was quick to respond to him as their tongues met in between their mouths before she drew him back into hers.

Feeling his fiancée's hand caressing his cheek when they parted, Castle pressed his forehead against hers and gave her a chaste kiss on the lips before moving to lie on his side next to her. "Let me ask you a question," he said as he was stroking her stomach as they looked up at the blue and white ceiling.

"Okay," Beckett said. She was surprised when Castle suddenly got up and she sat up to watch him walk to the closet. She smiled a little to herself as she'd been openly ogling him, but that fell off her face as she straightened up when he returned, carrying something small and a deep blue color. "You…"

"Any reason for this?" Castle asked, holding the object up as he sat on her side of the bed on the edge. "I'm hoping it's not because you don't think I could manage to get you off."

"No, I brought it because I wanted to use it, a long time ago," Beckett said. "But I threw it into my suitcase before I chickened out, it's not really necessary, you're keeping up with me nicely," she said, trying to grasp him.

"Hold on," Castle said, stopping her. "We could try and use this still."

"You mean you want me to masturbate with it for you?" Beckett asked, guessing that since it seemed the mostly likely answer.

"No, while we're together," Castle commented. At her hesitation he said, "I've never done that, seriously," having to add that when she looked at him incredulously. "And I've seen it in books before; position books; but never thought about actually doing it, it felt like it would take away some of my power over you sexually."

"This?" Beckett said, taking her vibrator from him. "I don't think so; I haven't used it since we've first been together. And we'll try that out since it'll be the first time for me, we'll learn together. But later tonight okay?" she said as she put it away in her nightstand. "Remind me to hide that before they come tomorrow."

"Good idea," Castle said. He watched her as she sat up and said, "Tired?"

"No, but not really feeling up to that either," Beckett said, watching him a little warily. When he leaned over and whispered to her, she laughed softly and said, "We're alone Rick, you don't need to be quiet."

"I'll hold you to that tonight," Castle said as he went to the bathroom while she turned to lie on her stomach.

"You're such a pervert," Beckett said, smiling over her shoulder at him as he walked back out to her. "So I'm assuming you want me to be more vocal now? I thought I was doing a pretty good job of that," she commented as she turned her head the other way to see the ocean out the windows. "Especially this morning."

"You restrained yourself at the shower," Castle pointed out as he got some lotion on his hands.

"Uh-uh, you have me outside where your neighbors can hear us or walk up for a visit, I'm holding back," Beckett said. She tensed for a brief second when he began to rub her back, and then relaxed, sighing deeply as he found a knot and worked it out carefully. "This is much better than the sunscreen," she said, letting out a slight grunt as he went to a tighter knot next.

"I enjoyed that too," Castle said simply. "But I think we should change the subject."

"Do we have time for another?" Beckett asked, starting to raise her head.

"Not really, unless you're up for a quickie?" Castle suggested.

"I could be, but I think I'd prefer to be able to take our time," Beckett said. She was quiet, closing her eyes before she realized something after a while and then said, "Do I smell like chlorine?"

"No, we were under that water pretty long," Castle said. "So you're good."

"Do you still have that sandalwood lotion you use here?" Beckett asked. When he paused she couldn't help smile and said, "Yes I do want to return the favor."

"Thank you," Castle said, going back to massaging her. He went down all the way to the small of her back as they were both quiet, and when they finished he glanced at the clock while she got up.

"We have time," Beckett said, smiling at him and kissing him before he went back to wash his hands and get his lotion. She took a deep breath, smelling the Stella McCartney lotion on her that he'd bought her shortly after Valentine's Day, and watched him coming back. "You know if it ever works out and we meet Paul, I should tell him to tell his daughter you love her beauty supplies," she commented, taking the bottle before he climbed on the bed.

"Only if they're on you," Castle said simply before he kissed her. It was a quick kiss and he followed her example once he was on his stomach, looking out the window. He grunted when she found the first of many knots, and his head started to spin as the sandalwood in his lotion mixed with the roses in hers. But eventually the scents merged together enough to allow him to calm down, and he relaxed completely.

As she went down to the small of his back, Beckett watched as his skin stopped reacting to her touch, until finally she realized something as she finished. "Castle?" she said, leaning over. She couldn't help smiling as he made no response, his face relaxed in sleep and she lay over his back. "You're hard to resist Rick, you'd better be prepared for tonight," she whispered into his ear before she kissed it, making him jerk awake.

"Oh… sorry, I think?" Castle asked, turning over to look at her as he realized he'd been out through much of the massage.

"No, it's okay, I dozed myself earlier, so I guess we did have _siestas_ today, just not at the same time," Beckett said with a smile as he turned over and sat up. She wrapped her arms around him and said, "Plus you've been busy today."

"Yep, but that was a great cat nap, and I guess I should get dressed for dinner," Castle commented, looking at the clock and seeing it was nearly time for them to leave.

"Really quickly though," Beckett begged him. She smiled again when he whipped his head back at her tone, and then kissed him, slowly, bordering on sensuously before they parted. "Go, and when you're done, wait for me at the door," she said, letting go of him.

"I can't watch you get ready?" Castle asked. When she shook her head no, he sighed and said, "I do need to get the car out," before he got off the bed and headed to the closet to throw on his suit he'd brought for their dinner that night. As he was getting dressed, he remembered getting his fiancée's device, shuddering as he remembered seeing it the evening before trying to find her bikini bottoms for her. He hadn't been surprised she'd brought it, more so that she had it. Pushing the memory of their discussion concerning it out of his mind, he finished getting on clothes, almost hating the suffocating sensation of the suit. But he wanted that night with Beckett, so he finished and then stepped out, seeing that she was in the bathroom before he left, deciding not to push it and wait for her to come out.

As soon as she knew she was alone, Beckett stepped out; putting on her dress taking far less time than Castle had with his clothes. She looked at herself in the mirror, touching her aquamarine pendant before she ran her fingers through her hair, curled more since she'd let it dry after their long shower. It didn't take her much longer to finish before she was heading out to the stairs, and she smiled as her fiancé's eyes widened momentarily seeing her and said, "This one I bought on my own, in case you might ask."

"You look amazing Kate," Castle said, taking her hand once she'd left the stairs. He took her into his embrace and murmured to her before she pulled back to look at him.

"I did have another dress," Beckett told him.

"One more time, please," Castle said as they went to the door.

Sighing, Beckett finally nodded in agreement, and said, "What if that other dress was new too?"

"I think I'd still want you in this one," Castle said, eyeing her in the thin dress that clung to her upper body, the wide, abstract pattern of blue darker than her aquamarine pendant making the pale blue stand out. "Julia too probably," he said as he opened the passenger door for her.

"Probably," Beckett said, laughing softly before she kissed her fiancé's cheek and sat down.

Breathing out as he'd ogled her legs under the just barely knee length hem, Castle wondered how that night would go before pushing the thought aside and focusing on their dinner together, hurrying around to the other side of the car. As he drove away from the house, he took Beckett's hand, a little surprised when she entwined their fingers together. Looking at her, he brought her hand to his lips quickly, before she squeezed his hand in response and let go of him, letting him take them down the coast to Southampton.

* * *

Sitting at the bar at the Sur La Mer restaurant, Beckett said, "I'm hoping we don't actually get drunk this time."

"I think we'll be fine," Castle said simply. "They will have dancing tonight, like last time."

"I had a feeling, are you going to request the same song as before?" Beckett asked, sipping her martini.

"No, I have something else in mind, I just hope they have the song," Castle said. "The one Julia had us listen to at the park," he said when he saw the questioning look on his fiancée's face.

Before Beckett could reply, the hostess came to them, telling them their table was ready. She smiled as they went to one of the tables directly next the water in the outside seating area and told Castle as he helped her into her chair, "I thought you'd request the same table."

"As long as we could see the water I don't care where we sit," he told her simply. Once the hostess was gone he said, "You're sure we'll make it back in time to call Julia?"

"I know it's late, but we were a bit… preoccupied earlier to do that," Beckett said, reminding him as she looked down at her menu. She glanced up at her fiancé and smiled when he had a smirk on his face. "Stop," she said, rolling her eyes. "I wasn't about to ask you to throw on clothes and go down to talk to her. We'll have to head straight back home after this though, if that's alright."

"That's fine, but I want to go down to the beach after we talk with them," Castle commented.

"I was hoping to too," Beckett said. "For now, let's get our orders in and eat."

"Starving or wanting to dance?" Castle asked, studying her over his menu.

"Both," Beckett said, having her turn to smirk as Castle paused as he realized why she was starving. She shivered in the breeze that blew in, knowing it wasn't all because of the slightly cool wind though. She turned her attention to the menu, and asked her fiancé about what he'd eaten there before, bringing herself back to the present.

Getting their food quickly, Castle said before they ate, picking up his martini glass, "So we're in July now."

"I know," Beckett said softly, knowing what he was alluding to. Even though she had taken off her engagement ring before getting dressed, she swore she could still feel the weight of the band on her left ring finger and she quickly picked up her own glass. "To our wedding," she said softly though the other tables weren't very close to them.

"Our wedding," Castle repeated. He tapped his glass to hers, and they drank before starting on their meal. He watched her as they took their first few bites, and when he looked up at her from his food he was a little startled to find her watching him. "What?" he asked her.

"I think you should be asking me what I've been thinking of," Beckett said, smiling briefly. She then grew serious and said, "I'm alright Rick, just… trying not to think of Isabella growing up without her mother. I'm just glad she at least has her aunt but…"

"It's not the same," Castle said, knowing by her use of his name that she was serious. He nodded saying, "You were a kindred spirit to Carlotta I think, whether or not you realize it, you were both mothers and you've both fought with your lives to protect your daughters."

Nodding as she'd had that thought already, Beckett said softly as she picked up her glass, "If there was any way she could know, she would thank us for making sure nothing happened to her daughter. I think of that when I look at Julia, because I know if the situation was me and Julia instead of them-"

"Kate," Castle said quickly.

Shaking her head, Beckett continued saying, "I would just want our daughter to be safe." She looked up at the sky and looking back to her fiancé, saw he had his glass in hand. She knew what he was doing, and smiling a little wistfully said, "To Carlotta."

"And to all mothers who will protect their children as much as you and she do," Castle added. They tapped glasses, and sipped with a slightly melancholy mood, making him frown. "This turned a little bleak," he said carefully, waiting to see if she was okay with what he wanted to do.

"It did. But you know I'm hoping Julia will be better about the fireworks than she was last year," Beckett said, knowing what he was doing and going along with it.

"Was she that scared?" Castle asked. When his fiancée nodded once he then said, "Oh that's right, you had us go inside for the Memorial Day fireworks. We might have to do something to help her out this year so we can watch outside."

Beckett smiled and said, "You have something in mind?"

Castle began suggesting what they could do, from noise cancelling headphones to Beckett's motorcycle helmet. Eventually he had her laughing, and they were able to spend their time in a better mood than they'd been before, which had been his goal from the start, wanting to see her smiling again.

* * *

"Hi Mommy! Hi Castle!" Julia said when they both appeared on the screen of the TV in his office. She then continued before they could speak saying, "Did you swim today too?"

"We did, but we'll swim every day when you come," Castle said.

When Julia looked to her, Beckett smiled and said, "We will. But tell us what you did today, we want to know."

"We've been waiting all day to hear," Castle commented quickly.

Julia grinned at that and then quickly told them about hers and Alexis' trip to Chinatown for the day with their grandparents, saying, "We ate Dim Sum like when we were in San Francisco, it was good, but I liked when we ate over there. And we went shopping and I got chopsticks, kids ones and grownup ones."

"We forgot to get those for her," Castle said to his fiancée.

"I know, we've been busy," Beckett said, smiling. "What are on the grownup ones?"

"Phoenix birdies," Julia said.

"Not surprised," Castle commented. "Anything else you got?" When Julia shook her head he glanced at his mother behind Alexis and said, "No one tried to buy you anything else?"  
"She didn't want anything else," Alexis said as her sister shook her head. "But Gram got some bracelets that Jules helped her pick out and your dad, Beckett, picked up a smaller model of a _katana_ for a friend's birthday."

"And you?" Castle asked his daughter.

"A robe and some slippers," Alexis said. "So it was a fun trip, and then we headed to Mr. Beckett's building to swim, since it was pretty hot."

"We swam in the pool out here too," Beckett said to Julia. "We'll do it again tomorrow once you get here, unless you want to go down to the beach?"

"No, let's swim in the pool both days and the beach the day after too," Julia said eagerly. "That way I go to both with you and Mari too."

"Should we tell her about our ride?" Castle asked his fiancée.

"Yeah! Tell me!" Julia said eagerly. "Did you jump?"

"We did, but I think he's talking about what happened after we were leaving the stable where their stalls were," Beckett replied. "I almost ran into Mari's mother, literally."

"Does she ride horsies too?" Julia asked in surprise.

"She and Mari's dad do," Castle answered. "They were actually practicing playing polo and they invited us to join them."

"So you got to play polo Richard?" Martha asked.

"Sort of," he replied. "We just passed the polo ball to each other, me to Kate and David and Rebecca to each other, until they scored."

"So you lost?" Julia said, sounding disappointed.

"Well, if it had been an actual game, I think so," Beckett said. "But it was more to let your daddy try it out since he's always wanted to play."

"Are you going to now you have a taste for it?" Jim said.

"If I could find a league in the city, sure, but for now I'm glad I managed to try it out sort of," Castle said.

Looking at the time then, Beckett said, "I think we're going to have to wrap this up, almost someone's bedtime… not your grandpapa's sweetie." She laughed with Castle when their daughter pouted her lips at that; since she had pointed to Jim; and said, "It's yours, but we're letting you stay up a little bit later on Friday remember."

"For the fireworks," Castle added. "And I hope you'll enjoy them outside this year, we both do."

"Will you help cover my ears with Mommy?" Julia asked shyly.

"Of course, had to do that for Alexis when she was the age you are," Castle said, smiling at Beckett as she took his hand. "But we'll help you see how fun they are okay?"

"Kay," Julia said.

"Alright, then I love you sweetheart and I can't wait to see you tomorrow," Castle said. "Actually that applies to all of you, and I love you too Alexis, Mother. Jim, thanks for going with them today."

"It wasn't a problem," Jim said with an incline of his head as Julia nodded to Castle on the TV. "I'll get them out there tomorrow morning, as early as we can manage."

"Thank you Dad, I love you. And Martha, Alexis, I'm looking forward to your getting here and joining us. Sweetie?" Beckett said to Julia last. "I love you so much and can't wait to see you too."

"Love you Mommy, night!" Julia said earnestly.

After saying goodnight and goodbye to the others with his fiancée, Castle turned off the TV and then turned to Beckett. "Still want to go out to the beach?" he asked her. He wasn't really surprised when she left instead of answering him, and he smiled, following her outside and down the steps to the yard. He was able to catch up to her, taking her hand as they stopped before they reached the sand.

Slipping out of her heels, Beckett walked down to the water as she was barefoot first, and went to where the waves broke over her skin. She shivered slightly, wrapping her arms around herself before she felt her fiancé behind her, wrapping his arms around her. Smiling, she turned, and draped her arms around him tightly, taking his kiss as he leaned his head down to her. Their lips met, and she was clutching at him tightly as his hands pressed the small of her back, holding her against him roughly. Things had started out gentle, but it became instantly rough as they were moving their hands, trying to get a better grip on each other before she suddenly pulled away, needing to breathe desperately.

"We… should…" Castle started to say before he trailed off. He took a deep breath and said, "Want to sit?"

"I don't think so," Beckett said. "We'll have time for that another night, but now…" she said, running her hands over his chest.

Breathing heavily, Castle nodded, taking her hands into his own and pressing kisses to her palms before taking her right hand. They walked together up to the house, pausing to get their shoes which were discarded just inside the door. He wrapped his arm around her waist as they went up the stairs, kissing her temple before he murmured into her ear.

Her cheeks becoming heated, Beckett nodded once before they reached their bedroom finally and they slipped inside, not even bothering to close the door behind them. She pulled on his lapels, and brought him close enough for another kiss before they worked on getting his jacket off and then fumbling a little with his tie. They parted and came back together a few times, before she managed to unbutton his shirt. She followed him to the bed, stumbling slightly on the way since they were still kissing each other. When they managed to reach it, she turned for him at his whispered command, holding her hair out of the way to allow him to unzip her dress. As it slipped off her body and to the floor, she turned back to him, smiling as he leaned down to kiss his way over her abdomen and then her mound as she was finally naked to him. Trembling when he stood up, since he'd kissed her clit directly, she helped him in a kind of mad rush to get the rest of his clothes off.

Following Beckett onto the bed, Castle sat up against the headboard as he watched her lean over to the nightstand, running his hand over her back as she grabbed her vibrator. "So you're sure about this?" he asked. "We've never used toys before."

"I wouldn't be jealous love," Beckett said, tossing her hair over her shoulders. "I'll keep it on low."

Castle wrapped his arm roughly around her waist, pulling her to him before crushing her lips under his own. He kissed her hard as his hand reached in between them, and he felt her folds were already slick with her desire. When they needed to breathe, he studied her closely, and said, "I'll let you decide this one."

Beckett kissed him once, briefly, before she straddled him after turning away from him. She heard his hiss when she grasped his erection with her free hand, descending on him slowly with his help as he held her hip with one hand. "Castle… do you want me to say now…" she breathed to him once they were coupled together fully.

"Whenever you want," Castle assured her. He wasn't too surprised when she shook her head no, and he groaned saying, "Then just take my cock, love, however you want you know I'll take whatever you give me," kissing her shoulders in case it was too rough as he actually spoke. He got a surprise when she immediately started to move, and he groaned hard as she did so, since she was heavily aroused already. He was quick to move with her and he kissed the back of her shoulder saying, "You liked that."

"Yes, just let me…" Beckett began before trailing off. She somehow remembered the device clutched in her left hand, and she spread her legs wider once she was sure she and Castle had their rhythm together set. Turning it on, she found she wasn't really embarrassed when the low buzz noise joined the slap of their hips together as they were moving fast by then. She found it a little surreal, as she had fantasized about her fiancé while using that vibrator so many times already that it was almost a relief to hear the sound and be actually with him instead of alone. She brought it down to the apex of her legs, but paused before finally moving it lower, pressing it down so it touched her clit and all the way down to where he was moving in and out of her at the same time. She nearly screamed at the shock that she felt going through her and going through him at the same time, feeling her fiancé clutching at her tightly a second later.

"Kate… love, you're going to… to get us off too fast like that!" Castle groaned in desperation, though there was more than a little pleasure as he could feel that vibration shooting through both his body and his fiancée's. He kissed the back of Beckett's shoulders, and then made her lean back to kiss him as he moved the device up to her clit. He grunted as he could still feel the sensation of it through her body, his entire form on fire almost from the feeling of it steadily stimulating them both. He broke off the kiss they were currently in, panting for air as she moaned a little weakly in front of him. "Are you-" he started to say, suddenly dizzy as she pulled the vibrator away.

"I'm fine, just, just, it was too much," Beckett had a little bit of a hard time saying before the words finally left her mouth. She was leaning back against Castle, using him as leverage and rocking her hips away from him roughly, nearly managing to make him slip out of her as she did that. But she was careful; since she could feel it; to make sure he didn't leave her. She was aware of the device still going, and she bit her lower lip, glancing back at her fiancé. But she held back from her sudden idea, turning her head to kiss him passionately, turning off her vibrator with the same hand holding it before letting it drop to the bed next to them; within easy reach.

His hands drifting up to her breasts, Castle added a little stimulation to their rougher lovemaking, fondling the mounds before he began to roll her nipples with his fingers. Her reaction was felt around him, and his eyes nearly rolled into the back of his head as she began to work her sex around him repeatedly adding to the friction steady between them, whispering to her, "You read the sample."

"Yes but… I don't think I have to do this all the time," Beckett replied. She wasn't too shocked when her fiancé didn't reply to that at first, knowing what he was trying to handle as their bodies were moving together, sliding against one another as their skin became slick with sweat, and she reached behind her, forgetting her plan as she wrapped her arms around Castle's neck. When he crossed his arms over her stomach, she moaned deeply in pleasure as they were both able to move more deliberately against each other, the smack of hips meeting louder in the room, though it was having to compete with the bed below them and their groans of pleasure. She wasn't sure what made her recall it, but after they had enjoyed themselves in that way for a good length of time, she opened her eyes suddenly, and scrambled to find the vibrator, picking it up and turning it on with one hand again. She reached down, and closed her eyes, waiting for her fiancé's reaction, bracing her nearly powerless body for him.

"Kate!" Castle yelled hard as she brought the toy to his arousal and began to run it what felt like everywhere. He clenched his teeth as he hissed to her, "I can't… I'm going to come, you have to stop!" almost begging her. When she wasn't stopping, he finally couldn't take it, and grabbed the vibrator; nearly throwing it to the floor after getting it off before he grabbed her hips, slamming heavily into her until finally he broke, yelling her name again in his pleasure as she leaned against him, her head going over his shoulder. Their nearly simultaneous climax made him a little delirious in the movements of his hands, and he held her wherever his hands went, allowing them free rein as everything inside him seemed to throb; everything in her seemed to throb; and the sensation knocked them headlong into another orgasm. He had no idea when they stopped, when they calmed down, only that Beckett in front of him was limp against his chest. "Love?" he whispered finally.

"I'm okay," Beckett replied, breathing a little less heavily then. She turned and smiled at her fiancé, saying, "We should bring that in more often."

Breathing out hard as she got off him, Castle lay down with her and said, "I know, that was pretty amazing, though just having you yourself is nice too."

"Same for me with you," Beckett said, smiling widely as she lay on his chest. She kissed him deeply and when they'd managed to pull away she pressed her cheek to his heart, hearing as it slowed down as they were both suddenly completely silent. She wasn't sure how long they lay like that, breathing deeply, getting their energy back after nearly wiping themselves out. She wasn't really surprised when; after a while; she felt Castle's hand reach down to her ass, cupping it a little hesitantly. At that, she quickly did what she'd been imagining herself doing when she'd realized she was getting heavily aroused again, and straddled his leg.

"Love," Castle hissed, feeling her rocking her sex back and forth against him. "How- what were you thinking about?" he asked her as he rolled them around so she was on her back. He wasn't surprised when she didn't reply, and not really needing one he kissed her hard, sliding into her without her help as he'd been able to tell she was more than ready. He didn't start to move right away though, instead he moved away from her lips to take her feet, placing the bottom of them on his hips. That done, he propped her head up with pillows, bring her slightly closer to him.

"You should have done this before," Beckett teased him, though she couldn't really keep the excitement out of her tone. She gasped out heavily as he thrust inside her once, and knew why he'd picked that position. It was both because he was able to get deep inside her and he could reach her upper body, his mouth taking her right breast. The jolt of fire from that raced down to where they were moving together as she ran her nails over the back of his head as he suckled her nipple; flicking it back and forth with his tongue and making her move a little wildly against him. Her legs nearly moved from his hips, but she was just able to keep them in place before he moved to her other breast. She was burning and she had to wonder if he could feel the same doing that.

Castle was a little taken aback when his fiancée was suddenly pulling him up to her, kissing him as hard as she possibly could, making him groan once before he pulled away to breathe. "Sorry," he apologized hurriedly before descending back to her lips. The kiss was rough, and his body followed, losing the rhythm he'd had before and mostly doing the same as hers had before he'd gotten her back in time with him. But instead of correcting him, Beckett was following his lead, and he had to breathe again, the pleasure of that sensation making his heart race wildly. He looked down at her as he caught his breath, watching the way her body moved, the way it undulated against him, the light from the room defining her muscles, making his mouth water as he watched her skin begin to glisten as they pushed each other toward their end.

Beckett's eyes flew open as Castle took her hands in one of his, and she allowed him to place it; holding her by her wrists; above her head. She was trying to breathe, but the way her fiancé looked at her then, his eyes intense in his gaze making her weak kneed, though she wasn't even standing. She moaned as he pressed his lips to hers, a chaste, gentle kiss that nearly had her forgetting how to breathe as he descended slowly to her neck. While he nuzzled it gently she tried to slip her hands out of his grasp out of instinct. But feeling the constraint of his hand she stopped, knowing if she focused on getting her hands out of his hold, she was going to miss what he was doing to her. She held her breath as he was kissing at the hollow of her throat, and his hips suddenly changed angle before he stopped altogether. "What-" she started to say, nearly jerking against him at the abruptness of that.

"Like this," Castle said hurriedly, taking her left leg and wrapping it around his legs, and her other leg he had her wrap around him as high as she could get on his side. His first thrust was hard, and her nails in his arms nearly broke the skin as he was deep, and she was tight. He was dizzy again, feeling her slick around him, moving with him as they thrust again in prefect sync, her hips cradling him so perfectly it was almost torture to pull away from that. He thought he'd just started when his fiancée began to speak, but her words threw every other thought out of his head as he heard what she was saying.

"Rick, please, I need to come, make me come now!" Beckett cried, not having a problem saying that because it was what her body was desperately trying to reach for. Every inch of her was burning still, and his length inside of her was the only difference in the sea of the same sensation. She needed something to make her break, and she ended up finding it as he tilted down a little more than he already was, just as she bent her right leg at the knee, letting it rest against his side. The stimulation tore through her body, and she lost complete control of herself as everything seemed to happen at once, trying to hold on as wave after wave of pure ecstasy was making her nearly black out. She felt Castle calling her name, nearly bellowing it into their room, joining her heavy, loud cries of his name that was a shock as she had no idea that she was saying anything. But there was too much to focus on, and she was unaware of anything else but their climaxes together until they seemed to be slowing down their thrusts at the same time suddenly.

Castle heard his fiancée's light gasps of surprise as he suddenly slammed against her once, then twice before he stopped, breathing deeply as his body lost the last of its strength and he only managed to keep from falling on her because his arms stayed as they were, bracing his weight. "You… we're going to kill each other with this," he panted.

"I know," Beckett murmured. She smiled when her fiancé's head rose to look at her and she said, "I don't think I want to stop though."

"No, that would be… horrible," Castle said before kissing her deeply. "And you can't blame me for wanting to hear you; you're sexy as hell when you call my name."

"Hmm, that's either a compliment to yourself or to me," Beckett said, sighing as he pulled away from her carefully then. "Or both."

"To you, but thanks for thinking it's for me too," Castle said, holding her close to him. "How many times did we…?"

"Just now? The one time," Beckett said.

Shaking his head Castle said, "I mean today, since this morning?"

"A lot," Beckett blushed. "You're not really going to count are you?"

"No. But why are you blushing? We're a couple in a loving, healthy relationship that's physical and emotional," Castle said before he paused. "Have you ever spent a day like today with someone else?"

"No, and I know what you're going to eventually ask, I never talked like that with someone else either," Beckett said. "You?"

"The talking… well, no, that's the funny thing, it was mostly just about getting to the sex and worry about anything else later," Castle said.

"Even when you were married before," Beckett asked, not really believing him.

"And now you see part of why they were okay with divorcing me," Castle commented with a grimace. "And I'm not doing this with you to try and get you to stay with me, it's not deliberate, I-"

Covering his mouth with her hand, Beckett smiled and said, "I know, I would be pretty aware if you were doing this for that reason. That being said, you've spent days like this together with others."

"It was different though, today felt different," Castle said, sitting up suddenly. "Don't think I'm being corny, but I swear that it was because I'm with you. You remember our first day together after Gates told you that you still needed to serve out your suspension? That day?"

"Hard to forget, we explored a lot of my apartment," Beckett said, smiling in satisfaction at the memory. "I'm so glad we didn't use what was the extra bedroom then."

"Me too, but did you get the feeling even that day was different from our first night together?" Castle asked.

"It was, but it's always different," Beckett said simply as he turned to her to lie above her. She smiled when he seemed to be trying to think of a way to reply to that and she murmured to him, cupping his cheeks, "And it has always felt amazing, even when we were a little more relaxed with one another. By the way, thank you for not outright fucking me our first time, I appreciated it, and I was surprised too actually."

"I had all the time in the world, you'd come to me, and I did that our second and third time," Castle said, smirking at her. "At your unspoken command. I ended up being surprised myself when you eventually let me have a little bit of a say in things."

"That was because I realized I was starting to try and make things go as I wanted them," Beckett said. She smiled when Castle didn't let her speak, instead kissing her, and she kissed him back before continuing with, "I did that before, and knew it wasn't going to work with you, we were too equal together and it had to spill into our love life. I'm really glad that it did."

"Man, you don't know how glad I am too," Castle said, exaggerating his tone. He laughed when Beckett pinched his side, and he leaned down, kissing her again, but that time more sensuously until they had to get some air. "But we should probably forget the past, concentrate on now, which should be some sleep?" he said as he moved to lie next to her again, ending in a question to see what she would say.

"Yes, but if one of us happens to wake up…" Beckett said. She smiled when Castle squeezed his hand on her hip, holding her tightly to him, and then told him, "I know, we've never stopped each other doing that since that night, so feel free to wake me up if you find you have to have me."

"And vice versa," Castle said, entwining their hands on her side, squeezing tightly before he kissed her gently and a bit quickly, since he had to lean down awkwardly to do that. "I love you," he told her seriously, murmuring against her lips.

"I love you too," Beckett whispered back to him. She pressed against his side, closing her eyes and letting her sated fatigue take her directly into sleep, no barrier between it and being awake that time.

Pressing his lips to the top of his fiancée's head, Castle murmured, "I adore you love," and then let himself give in to what his body was screaming to him for. But like Beckett, he was pleasantly satiated as he slipped rapidly asleep, getting his strength back.

The waves crashing harder outside on the shore never reached the two inside their room, their rest deep as the moon eventually left the night sky above the beach. They would come together as it neared dawn; but while it was still dark, they stayed pressed close to one another, letting the time slip by until they awoke to their desire for one another again.


	22. Epilogue- Light Up The Sky

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The title of this chapter is a lyric from the song Dance 'Til We're High written by Paul McCartney, from The Fireman's (Paul McCartney and Youth) album Electric Arguments.

Clambering on the end of the bed, Julia frowned when her mother and Castle were still asleep as she stood. She then started to jump up and down crying, "Wake up, wake up!"

Groaning, Castle raised his head as Beckett sat up saying, "It's too early."

"No it's not," Julia said indignantly. "It's morning, did you go to sleep late?"

"Come here," Beckett said with a laugh before she stifled a yawn. "Morning sweetie." She hugged the little girl to her tightly and said, "It's not early Castle."

"I'm up," he said in reply as he sat up. "Oh no, it's not," he commented, looking at the clock on his nightstand. "So, why are you up?" he asked Julia as Beckett kissed her temple.

"'Cause I'm happy," the little girl said, giggling as he gave her a loud kiss on the cheek. "And I wanna swim again, lots."

"You will," Beckett said. "Is anyone else awake?"

"No, just me, I just woke you up," Julia said.

"Aren't we lucky," Castle muttered, laughing when his fiancée pushed his shoulder playfully. "Morning though, Kate," he then said.

Beckett shook her head and closed the gap between them, kissing him gently before they parted. "So I guess you want to get started?" she asked their daughter who'd watched them.

"Yeah, what do we do first?" Julia asked eagerly.

"Hopefully breakfast," Alexis said from the doorway.

"And coffee," Castle promised, getting out of the bed. He wasn't surprised to hear Julia's squeal at that, and he threw on his robe before picking her up. "I'm guessing you'll help me?"

"Yeah, and I have a good idea… I think," Julia said earnestly before she trailed off.

"Let's go see what it is," Castle said before he left with her and Alexis.

Beckett smiled, shaking her head as she watched them go before she took a deep breath and forced herself out of the bed. It was difficult, since she was incredibly comfortable, but she put on her robe and left the room in time to see her dad coming out of his room down the hall on the other side of the house. "Hey, how'd you sleep?" she asked as she waited for him at the top of the stairs.

"Really well, I might have to come out here with you more," Jim said. "I take it you slept pretty well too?"

"I did, we were worn out by Julia yesterday, so it was nice to get some rest," Beckett said as they went down to the kitchen. She smiled as her daughter waved to her grandfather from the chair she was sitting on at the island, and when Martha joined them, she suddenly remembered their arrival the day before.

* * *

_"So is there anything left to do?" Castle asked as he watched his fiancée get dressed in another bikini before putting on a cover-up that looked like a sundress. "We got our friend off the floor and… what?" he asked, laughing as she was laughing herself._

_"Our friend, you know technically it's mine, I just allowed you the pleasure of using it," Beckett said. "Though I think I actually let you feel it while I was using it."_

_"And we'll bring him back around right? Every once in a while?" Castle suggested._

_Smirking Beckett said, "So no jealousy for him? Actually, call it it. It's a little creepy giving it a gender, next thing I know you'll ask me to name it."_

_"Then I'll get jealous again," Castle teased her. "So that's a yes you know. And I don't think I should be jealous, you were just fine in the end without it."_

_Smiling though her cheeks were slightly flushed as she remembered, Beckett said, "I was. But they're going to be here… soon. So we took care of cleaning up our bathing suits, our shoes from dinner last night… the pool area was fine when we ate out there. I think we're set."_

_"Then let's go out and wait for them," Castle said, holding his hand out to her. He led her out the front door where they waited for their family on one of the benches, talking to each other and sharing a few quick kisses before the car he'd gotten for them to use pulled into the driveway._

_"Mommy!" Julia cried as she was able to jump out of the car since Alexis had helped her out of her car seat. She threw her arms around her mother as soon as Beckett had her in her arms saying, "I missed you so much!"_

_"So did I sweetie," Beckett said, sharing a kiss with her. "How was the drive?"_

_"Fun, we saw horsies again," Julia said before she caught sight of Castle behind her mother. "I missed you too," she said shyly as he took her._

_"I definitely did too sweetheart," Castle said, sharing a kiss with her. "Your mom and I were talking at breakfast about how quiet the house was without you running around and up and down the stairs."_

_Giggling, Julia said, "I'm happy I came but did you have fun with just Mommy?"_

_"A lot," Castle said before he reached out to Alexis with his free arm, hugging her tightly. He greeted his mother and Beckett's dad before saying, "Well, we're going to head to the pool until lunch with Julia, if the three of you want to join us you definitely can."_

_"I will," Alexis said quickly._

_"Castle," Beckett said then._

_"Oh, wait, I almost forgot, sorry love," Castle said, missing the glance his mother and Beckett's dad shared at that. "Jim, we'll give you a tour of the house, since this is your first time here."_

_"Can I help?" Julia asked as Castle was setting her down._

_"I'm counting on it," he told her before she ran to her grandfather to take him inside._

_"Let me help with the suitcases and then we'll do the tour okay?" Jim told his granddaughter. He smiled when Julia followed him back and forth outside until the four cases were in, as well as the telescope they'd brought from the city with them. "I think she's ready to begin," he commented to his daughter and Castle._

_"We'll start downstairs," Castle said, taking Beckett's hand as they went to the living room first. He spoke a little bit about the house and mentioned wanting to redecorate it with his fiancée's help, until they were heading upstairs. "There's one room we need to see first."_

_"Mine?" Julia asked in confusion as Castle was opening the first door after the stairs._

_"Yours sweetie, Castle and I worked on this together, but he surprised me with a few things when we came on Tuesday," Beckett told her as they watched her step inside first._

_Her eyes going wide as she looked around the room, Julia breathed, "It's perfect!"_

_"You like it?" Castle asked, watching her carefully as she stood in the middle and turned in a circle to take it all in._

_"Yes! It's… my room for real," Julia whispered softly as she went to the bed which was white with a tall headboard, and opened one of the drawers under the mattress. She gasped and said, "Is that for me?" seeing the folded bathing suit inside._

_"Yes, we decided to get it for you," Beckett said as Julia held up the tankini top before she hugged it. "But that's it for surprises; you needed that bathing suit anyways."_

_"That's kay, this room is my surprise," Julia said eagerly. She went to the dresser in between the two windows and touched the long piece of driftwood saying, "Is that what I found on the beach?"_

_"It is, and these are the shells you found," Castle said, pointing out the two bowls. "I hope it's okay, we thought you might like the bowls so the vases don't take up the whole space."_

_"I like it, and the posters," Julia said, pointing over to them hanging against the wall. She went over to them, one of Paul that was also a collage of pictures of the singer, the second of The Beatles on a white background with their signatures underneath; she had that same picture as a shirt which was one of her favorites. And the last she was surprised to see was a poster of George Harrison, but she smiled at it, happy to see it, since she hadn't known there were posters of him._

_"You should thank your daddy for finding those," Beckett said, taking her bathing suit to set it on the bed. "And he and I picked out what pictures to put in between."_

_"I like them," Julia said, nodding firmly. She then turned to Castle and hugged him tightly saying, "I love my room, thank you."_

_"You're welcome sweetheart," Castle said, hugging her back before she hurried over to her mother._

_"Thank you too Mommy!" Julia said. "Now let's show Grandpapa his room!"_

_"You can change her into her bathing suit if you want to," Jim said quickly._

_"It's okay, we'll finish up the tour and then go swimming," Castle said, leading the way down the hall and stopping at the opened up addition to the house. "If you don't like anything in here, just ask and I'll have my decorator help you set this room as you want it."_

_"I'm sure it will be… fine…" Jim said, trailing off as he took in the bedroom._

_"Dad?" Beckett asked, touching his arm._

_"It's great, I think your decorator won't need to redo anything," Jim said as he was able to tell everything was new. He went in and set his suitcase on his bed, which had a dark wood bedstead that he knew his daughter had to have told the decorator he preferred, and turned to go when he saw the key._

_"Whenever you want to come out here, you're free to do so," Castle said. "Just let us know in case someone wants to stay up here on their own."_

_"I will," Jim said, seeming to be a little in shock as he set the key back down._

_"There's one more room here," Beckett said, getting her dad's attention. "We want to show you, and Julia. Do you remember when we went to that party after Christmas sweetie?"_

_"The one with the room full of books?" Julia asked. She gasped and then asked excitedly, "Are we gonna get a library too?"_

_"A small one," Castle said, not surprised she'd been able to guess. He led the way down the hall to the room that ended that wing of the house, and opened the door, showing the three tall bookcases against the wall, in between the windows. "If we ever need more I have them ready in the garage storage to assemble, but it's likely this'll see more curios than books. And Kate and I will pick out some chairs to sit in to read, but later when we have the time."_

_After showing the rest of the upstairs to her dad, Beckett took Julia to her room while Castle stayed behind in theirs. As she was getting her daughter out of her clothes she said, "It's a little surprising when you first see it," to her dad who was looking out at the far window. "But it's a beautiful house."_

_"It is," Jim agreed wholeheartedly. "Did you know he had this when you first met?"_

_"No, come on Dad, you know I don't care about that," Beckett said, smiling since she knew he was joking as he'd used to tease her about marrying a rich man the first time she'd read Pride and Prejudice. "And believe me, his house isn't the reason I'm marrying him, it was an unexpected surprise."_

_"And it's not going to be my house for long," Castle said. He couldn't help chuckling when his fiancée and her father looked at him in surprise and quickly said, "It'll be our house love."_

_"You…" Beckett started to say as Julia wrapped her arms around her neck._

_"I'm putting your name on the deed once we're married, before actually, if we can do that," Castle said._

_"Thank you," Beckett said with a smile as Julia jumped up and down in front of her, kissing her cheek. "But you know you don't need to."  
"I do," Castle said before he shrugged. "I want to make it legal like we'll be making our family legal."_

_"Honey?" Jim said to his granddaughter. "Why don't you go see what Alexis is doing okay?"_

_"We'll be at the pool," Beckett said, helping Julia into her sundress. She left with Castle then, going downstairs and said, "So that's why you've been pushing me to help you redecorate."_

_"It is, I was going to surprise you when we got closer to the wedding, but it needed to be said now," Castle said. "Plus whatever apartment we buy will be ours, so I wanted this to be too. We'll spend a lot of summers… well, we'll try to; I'm planning on taking you and Julia around the world if I can."_

_Beckett laughed and said, "That explains the map you bought for her and had customized with her name in the corner to put pins on whenever we go somewhere new."_

_Shrugging Castle said, "So it's our home now, just a little longer and that'll be legal, not just symbolic."_

_"I want you and I to be legal more than the house Rick," Beckett said, wrapping her arms around him tightly. "But thank you again, I mean it." She pulled back and took his hand, going outside before she heard a creak at the top of the stairs, seeing her father walking towards his room. She glanced at Castle, seeing he'd noticed, and said, "You're not trying to get his approval too?"_

_"If this were about three hundred years ago, I would, but nope, he's your father, our daughter's grandfather, he should be included too," Castle said simply before he pulled his fiancée close and they left, walking down to the pool to get it ready for their family._

* * *

Standing on the top step, Julia watched her mother walking back up to her and asked, jumping up and down, "Can I come in now?"

"Yes, jump in and swim," Beckett said. When her daughter hesitated she quickly said, "I'll get you if you need me to."

"You're a pretty good swimmer," Castle told her as he was standing behind his fiancée then.

Julia jumped off the first step, and quickly kicked her legs to come up out of the water. She giggled when Beckett picked her up and said, "I did it Mommy."

"I know, now, want to go under all the way?" she asked.

"Didn't I go?" Julia asked. She reached up to the top of her head, and feeling her hair there was dry said, "Kay, all of us."

"Wait," Alexis called, coming into the pool then. "We're here."

"Is Mari too?" Julia said, watching as her grandfather and Martha followed her sister.

"Not yet, they're coming closer to lunch I'm sure," Beckett said. "Mari probably wants to swim a little with her parents in their pool."

Julia sighed a little but then perked up as Alexis came into the water asking, "You put on the lotion?"

"Before I came out," the young woman said, knowing she meant sunscreen. "I couldn't wait to get out here again."

"The ocean will be nice too," Julia commented. Before anyone could reply to that she said hurriedly, "Go down now!"

The little girl had spoken so quickly that Castle, Beckett and Alexis had to hurry to follow her under, and opening their eyes, they saw Julia waving to them before going back up.

"See me?" Julia giggled, wiping the water off her face.

"We did," Castle said, grabbing her before taking her to the side of the pool. "Jump?" he asked.

"Over there," Julia said eagerly. Walking as fast as she could, she went around to the deep end and said, "Look Alexis see what I do now!"

"I thought kids only did that with their parents," Alexis couldn't help saying laughingly to Beckett after Julia had jumped into the deep end and Castle was getting her.

"We've seen her do that before," Beckett said with a smile. "So she wants to show off to the new audience she has," she added as Julia was asking Jim and Martha if they saw her. "How was she yesterday when you swam at my dad's place?"

"She seemed to miss you two," Jim said before the two whirled around to him. "She asked me to swim but I didn't have my trunks, so I promised her I would today," he explained to his daughter.

"I'm glad you agreed, but I haven't seen you swim in a long time," Beckett commented as Julia paddled up to them and grabbed his arm.

"Do I swim good here too Grandpapa?" Julia asked him, kissing his cheek.

"Very good for your age," Jim assured her before Martha was calling to her son.

"Hand me the phone," Castle said, going to the edge. Taking it, he told the others, "David and Rebecca are bringing Mari at noon, for lunch, she wants to swim a little more at their pool."

"Can we swim here after dinner?" Julia immediately asked.

"And tomorrow morning, Mari can stay the night," Beckett replied.

"She can?" Julia squealed. When her mother nodded she hugged her around the neck; having to lean over in her grandfather's arms to do so. "Thank you Castle," she said shyly as he was coming back to them after answering the text from the Fosters.

"Not a problem, Alexis has had a ton of sleepovers here, now it's your turn," Castle commented as Jim handed him Julia. He threw her up in the air a little and said, "Want me to throw you?"

"Can-" the little girl immediately started to say to her mother.

"I'll be careful," Castle interrupted her, speaking to his fiancée.

"Go ahead, just make sure you do that over in that direction," Beckett said teasingly.

"Can you throw Mommy and Alexis too?" Julia asked as he took her to the middle of the pool.

"We can jump from the edges," her sister said, laughter tingeing her voice as Beckett called out no to her.  
"What she said, ready?" Castle asked quickly. When the little girl nodded, he threw Julia out to the deep end, where Alexis had been waiting, making sure she resurfaced. He felt a hand on his back and nearly jumped before he realized whose it was. "Hey love, sure I can't throw you too?" he asked teasingly.

"And if you strain your back?" Beckett said, running her hand down it and watching as he was obviously suppressing a shudder. She smiled and said, "But, we can jump from the end together; the four of us."

"That would be fun," Castle said, watching as Jim swam to the deep end where Julia and Alexis were holding onto the edge together, kicking at the water as fast as they could. He took her hand then saying, "Let's get some toys for them."

Smiling, Beckett followed him to the room on the other side of the fireplace and TV that didn't have a bed in it, and hit the beach ball inside to the water before Julia came out and joined them. "Tired already?" she teased her as the little girl wrapped her arms around her mother, leaning her chin on her stomach as she looked up at her.

"Wait!" Castle said suddenly, making the two jump. "Sorry, wait there!" He then rushed out to his phone as everyone was watching him, and going back inside the room he said, "Look up at your mom sweetheart, Kate, look down at her… please?" he added when his fiancée gave him a look.

Beckett finally relented and looked down at their daughter, unable to help smiling at Julia's slightly confused look before she smiled back. At the sound of the phone taking the picture, she turned to her fiancé and asked, "Why?"

"You looked just like Linda and Heather, remember that picture we saw on _Wingspan_? Oh and the video for _Maybe I'm Amazed_ ," Castle said before they went back out with some diving toys.

"I remember, where Heather's looking up at her mommy," Julia said before her cheeks turned a bright red. "We were like that?"

"Just like them, and it's a beautiful picture, I had to take it," Castle said. "I see now why Paul liked the one of his girls so much."

"So you're going to start taking pictures like the ones we saw in the documentary," Beckett asked, a wry smile on her face.

"Yep, I'll take you and Julia to Montego Bay, and take that same picture Paul did of Linda, Heather and Mary," Castle teased her, though something in the back of his mind wondered if he could.

Beckett rolled her eyes at that before she went over to the side of the pool on the deep end, about to go in. But before she could, Castle was grabbing her, and she only had a second to cry out shortly before they were going under the water. She could hear Julia's excited cries there though they were muffled, and when she resurfaced she splashed at her fiancé saying, "You always do that!" though she was laughing.

"Because it's fun," Castle said simply. He followed her then to the steps and grabbed the beach ball floating on the surface before saying, "Who's up for some volleyball?"

"Can I play?" Julia asked as she was raising her hand eagerly.

"You can," Beckett said. "I'll be on your team sweetie."

"Kay," Julia said, standing on the bottom of the pool just able to reach over the water near the stairs. She bounced up and down a few times before Castle threw the ball over to her and she hit it back to him before calling to her grandfather and Martha, making sure they were watching.

Smiling at her daughter's exuberance, Beckett hit the beach ball back to her fiancé making him almost fly out of the water to get it. At his splash, she looked over at Julia as she cried out and then watched her duck under the water. Picking her up, she hugged her tightly, pausing the game as Castle came back to stand with Alexis.

"Ready?" he asked.

"Go, I think we're winning," Beckett teased him after setting their daughter down.

"That was out," Castle joked before he was hitting the ball again.

The game lasted for a long while, as no one was keeping score, and only ended when Julia hit the ball to the side of the pool, making them all laugh as Jim hit it back. At that point they swam together, Julia taking turns to jump off the sides with her mother, Castle, Alexis and even her grandfather before they got out for lunch together down at the beach.

* * *

Picking up her daughter, Beckett was going to walk back to the towels when she saw a dog run up to her dad who was standing in front of them. "That's Lily, the Foster's dog," she called to him when he stopped the dog from running down to them in the water.

"There's Mari!" Julia cried, waving at the little girl as her mother set her down in the water. She ran up the sand to her and said, "I didn't know you were bringing your doggie."

"I asked and Mommy and Daddy said they would ask yours," Mari said with a smile. "She likes to swim, so it will be fun to go."

"I'm hoping it's okay," Rebecca said as her husband and Castle started setting out a large blanket next to the one the others already had set up.

"That's fine," Castle said. "We share the ocean here, so fine with us if she's part of the party."

"How're you doing?" David asked Castle then.

"Pretty well, I'm surprised you and Rebecca didn't ask about it earlier," he replied, touching his nose which was still bruised, but not as heavily as the week before.

"We figured it was a case," Rebecca said. "And that you'd been injured. But you two are okay?"

"Fine," Beckett said, turning from the water and where she'd been watching Julia petting Lily on the top of the head before hugging the Bernese Mountain Dog around the neck. "Just glad to get out of the city and relax," she said. "Going swimming?"

"As soon as I get our daughter ready," Rebecca said. "Mari, come here and take off your cover."

Julia went to her mother as her friend was being helped out of her dress and then into her swimming vest. She was going to ask Beckett about watching something that night when she saw what her mother was holding. "Oh Mommy no," she groaned, seeing the swimming vest. "Please? I can swim and I'm grown up now."

"Sweetie, the ocean's different than the pool," Beckett told her a little sternly. "When you're in the pool, you can swim without this. But until you're a little older, please wear this," she said as Julia crossed her arms, pouting.

"She looks like you when she's doing that," Castle commented, nodding to their daughter's arms. "Not so much her expression though. Julia, your mom and I also want you to be safe okay? So wear that for us, humor two people who are apparently ancient according to your standard of being grown up."

"I am too I think," Alexis said as Julia sighed and uncrossed her arms.

"Sorry," the little girl murmured to her mother as she put on the vest.

"It's okay, but look, Mari has her vest on now," Beckett said after sharing a kiss with her daughter. "Let's go out and swim a little bit."  
"And then have dessert?" Julia pleaded.

"Did you guys have-" Beckett started to ask as she went down to the water with the others; only hers and Castle's parents staying behind.

"We didn't, when Rick answered our text he said not to eat it; Julia had a surprise for us," David said.

Blushing and giggling a little, Julia said, "Alexis and I made it."

"I want some… what is it?" Mari asked as they stepped into the water.

"You will see," Julia said seriously. She then let go of her mother's and Castle's hands to take jumping strides over to the water before she was to her waist. "Come under," she called to Mari.

Following the girls slowly, Rebecca watched her daughter and said, "I'm glad we're getting to do this."

"Me too, but what's the hesitation for?" Beckett asked, hearing it in her tone.

"Nothing really, just wondering how things are going for you," Rebecca said as they stopped going forward while her husband and Castle followed the girls and Alexis in deeper. She smiled as Lily swam after them and then turned to her friend saying, "Were you involved in that case with Bracken?"

Nodding, Beckett was careful to keep the former senator's involvement with her mother's murder quiet, only talking about her desire to keep Isabella and Carlotta safe. "So I suppose I was able to achieve half my goal, but Castle and I talked about that. And she was being a mother."

"Hmm, you know, he is right. I just hope she'll be okay; the baby," Rebecca said. She shuddered and confessed, "I've tried protecting Mari from everything I could; Dave and I were lucky to have her."

"Isn't that what a mother does anyway?" Beckett pointed out. When her friend nodded she smiled a little and said, "You've done a great job, she looks to be doing amazingly well."

"And so has Julia," Rebecca said, nodding with her chin as their daughters were splashing David and Castle. "Should we join them?"

"Most likely, your husband and my fiancé are shooting looks over here," Beckett replied with a smile.

"Probably wondering if I'm talking about him," Rebecca said, rolling her eyes. "And I'm referring to my husband there."

"I'll say the same about Castle," Beckett said before they swam out to where their daughters were. She ducked under the water, tickling Julia's leg as she came up and at the same time tugging on the side of her fiancé's trunks. She laughed when she came up as Julia's laughter pealed over the crashing waves and she hugged her tightly. "Rick," she said simply as she felt her fiancé's hand on the tie to her bikini top.

"Sorry," Castle said quickly, letting her go and instead sliding his hand momentarily over her side to her shiver. "So, what should we do next?"

"Dessert?" Mari suggested in a whisper.

"That's the best idea," Julia said seriously.

"That was the only one though," Rebecca teased her.

Laughing at that, Julia said, "It is still best," not minding the teasing since she felt Mari's mother was a lot like hers.

"Okay, then I guess we're ready to head back," Castle commented. "Alexis?"

"Lily's heading back," his daughter called out, swimming back after the dog.

"She knew where we go," Mari said with a wide grin on her face as they started to swim back to shore.

When they got there, Jim and Martha were coming out from the house with said dessert in their hands. They passed out the popsicles that Julia and Alexis had made themselves of frozen triangles of watermelon. It was as they were doing that, that Beckett realized she'd forgotten to introduce her father, having a hard time remembering it was his first trip to the beach house. So she did that quickly as Julia, Mari and Alexis sat on their towels in front of everyone, and Castle's daughter engaged the girls in a discussion of what they wanted to see in the fireworks show that night.

"So what do you think of the Hamptons?" Rebecca was asking Jim as they were watching the three in front of them.

"It's beautiful, and I know my granddaughter loves being this close to the beach," Jim said. "I have to say I enjoy it as well, I always loved the ocean. Growing up my parents would always go in the summer to northern Massachusetts to spend a month at a beach there."

"I remember seeing those pictures of you when you were a kid," Beckett said with a smile.

"Were you an only child?" David asked. "Is that too forward of me to ask? I'm just curious since I don't think you've ever mentioned aunts or uncles Kate."

"I was," Jim said. "And so was my wife, so she doesn't have any aunts and uncles. But you have an aunt?" he asked his daughter's fiancé slowly.

"By marriage," Martha answered for him. "My brother passed away some time ago, but his wife Rho is still living in Ohio. I'm hoping she'll come to the wedding?" she asked her son.

"She will," Beckett said, answering for him that time. "I'd like Julia to meet her."

"Of course," Martha said with a smile. "She'll love meeting her new great-niece since I've told her about her before. But not that she was her niece, just that Alexis and I have been taking care of her."

"Mommy, we finished," Julia called from the towels. "Alexis told us about the birdie to play with."

"She remembered," Castle said with a slight laugh as he stood up. He went back to the house and the laundry room where the items were that he had bought before that week. "I figured we could teach Julia badminton," he told his fiancée as he came down the steps to the backyard. "Think they'll be able to play?"

"I'm not sure, we'll need to try," Beckett said, taking the racquet. "You know my mom loved playing this in the summer. We'd go to Central Park; the three of us, sometimes a friend of mine; and play barefoot. When it was just us three it'd be my mom and I against my dad."

"Who won?" Castle inquired.

"I don't know," Beckett said. She smiled nostalgically at the memory and commented, "That was a Beckett family rule; badminton was strictly for fun, no competing. And then after we'd go for a milkshake…"

Taking her hand, Castle stopped at the transition from grass to sand saying, "We don't have to play."

"No, it's a good memory, just one I don't want to forget," Beckett said reassuringly.

"Do you have pictures of you guys playing?" Castle said, wrapping his arm around her.

"We do, I should dig them out from my storage boxes," Beckett said. "By the way? That kinky past I teased you about, complete bull."

"I had a feeling," Castle said. "We'll make our own kinky memories. So, you okay to play now? Three to four?"

"My dad could even that out, but eight at a time is a little too much at once," Beckett said, nudging him in the side with the comment about memories. "Two at a time, we can take turns."

Castle nodded, and taking her hand again he led her down to the others saying, "Okay, I wanted to teach you badminton Julia, and you Mari if you don't know how to play already."

"She doesn't," David said, watching as the two little girls looked at the birdie he handed to him.

"Then we'll teach them," Castle said. "We'll have teams of two since there are so many of us, I'm calling you and I a team right now love."

Rolling her eyes though she was smiling, Beckett said, "And the other teams?"

"I'll play with Jules," Alexis said quickly.

"I wanna play with my mommy!" Mari cried.

"Jim, it'll be an honor to be part of your team," David said jokingly, shaking his hand.

"Did you tell them the rules Katie?" Jim asked when they'd all stopped laughing at David's tone of voice.

"There are no rules, this is just for fun," Beckett said, looking at her father questioningly for a moment before she could tell he was alright with the memory. "Okay, we'll play against you and David then Dad, since we need to teach these two newcomers." She followed Castle to the sand in front of the towels and told Julia and Mari who were sitting with Rebecca and Alexis on either side of them, "One thing you should know, always watch the birdie if you can okay? When we mess up," she motioned to Castle who gave her a mock glare as the two giggled. "You'll see we forgot to watch it."

"I can't wait to play," Mari said, wriggling on the towel.

"Me too," Julia said before her grandfather was making the first serve. She was surprised when the four adults were playing, and they seemed to be playing for fun as her mother had said. It made her more eager, and she jumped up as soon as Jim and David motioned her and Alexis to the sand.

"Try and hit it back to us okay? Since we're not playing for points, we want to keep this birdie flying as much as possible," Castle said, smiling when the little girl nodded, bouncing from foot to foot in her excitement. He hit the birdie to her carefully, not surprised when she missed.

"That was a good try, just keep your eye on it," Beckett said, nearly staggering under the weight of the déjà vu that had given her. She remembered her mother saying the same thing to her when she was first starting to play and she had to focus on Julia to try and forget the memory to come back to the present. She hit the pass that Alexis aimed at her, and cheered for hers and Castle's daughter when she was able to hit the birdie to him, though it didn't make it all the way to him.

"Good shot sweetheart," Castle said, going to pick it up. "That was the wind's fault though okay? Ready?"

"Yeah, I wanna hit it all the way to you," Julia said, jumping up and down.

It took the little girl a little time to be able to do that, but once she had, the two teams played a little more before they let Rebecca, Mari, Jim and David play; Martha content to watch them all. When they finished, Beckett and Rebecca insisted their daughters rest a little from the excitement, and Castle took the opportunity to speak with his daughter as they went to the house to get some lemonade for everyone.

"I wanted to say," he was telling her as Alexis got the pitcher she'd made while breakfast was being made. "Did I ever thank you for helping me out after Kate's and my fight?"

"No, but that's alright, I realized after the fact, you were my first counseling session," Alexis told him with a smile. "Though you're not a child, I did like the practice; and I seemed to help you both out, I think?"

"You did, you'll make an amazing psychiatrist," Castle said before he followed her back out with the tray of glasses he'd gotten ready. As they reached the others, he watched as his fiancée was spinning their daughter over the breaking waves, making her little toes skim the water to her laughter.

"Go Dad," Alexis said, taking the tray from him when she saw what he was staring at. "I've got it."

Kissing her cheek, Castle squeezed her arm and went down to the water saying, "Looks like fun."

"No I'm not doing that for you," Beckett teased him. She smiled as he shook his head and she touched his cheek; brushing her fingertips along his skin. "Okay?" she asked as Julia was taking his hand.

"Yep, just wanted to let you know that the lemonade is ready," Castle said, taking her hand and kissing the inside of her wrist.

Beckett squeezed his hand, and walked with him up to the blankets and towels where they joined their family and friends, sitting together and watching the waves in front of them as Julia sat with them. She and Castle listened to their daughter chattering with Mari about the fireworks that he'd made in the foam of Beckett's coffee that morning. She leaned her head against her fiancé's shoulder, wrapping her arm around him, startled to look at Rebecca and David to see they were much in the same position. She smiled to herself for a moment, and then answered a question Mari asked her, pulling Julia on her lap and feeling her memories of the past slowly retreating to the back of her mind, letting her focus on the here and now where she wanted to be.

* * *

"Come on you guys," Castle was saying as he was trying to catch Julia who was running through the water with Mari. "Didn't you say you were hungry?"

"We wanna stay in the water," Julia said. She then squealed once, shortly, as he picked her up and laughing said, "When are the fireworks Castle?"

"Not for a while longer," Castle said, making sure Mari was coming with him as he took Julia back up to where everyone else was sitting with their plates. "So we'll eat, maybe look for shells, and have dessert before then."

"Kay," Julia said, going to her mother who was holding open her towel to her. She sighed as Beckett's drying her off warmed her up and she leaned back against her. "Do I have to put on my dress?" she asked, looking up at her.

"I'd prefer if you did sweetie," Beckett replied, drying her hair last. "That way you'll be warm, the wind is a little chilly."

Julia looked over at her friend and saw that her mother was putting her sundress on her, so she didn't argue as Beckett helped her put on her blue Hawaiian print sundress. "Do they wear these over there?" she asked suddenly as her mother led her over to the chairs that were a distance away from the towels and blankets, a bonfire already going in front of them.

"Some girls do," Castle answered when his fiancée looked at him. "You've never been there either, seriously?"

"I've given you a list of where I've been Castle," Beckett said as she sat down next to Julia and he sat next to her. "And that list is far shorter than yours."

"Well, your list will get longer," Castle promised. "But they do wear those, when we go, your mom and I will get you one to wear."

"Thank you," Julia said with a smile before she took her plate. "Did you make these?" she asked, looking past her grandfather on her other side to her sister.

"Dad did," Alexis said. "But I gave him the idea."

"These are big on the West Coast?" David asked.

"Very, and that includes Mexico," Alexis said. "But we had fish tacos on a beach in San Diego; remember Gram?"

"I do, they were just like these, but different fish," Martha answered. "But they were amazing."

"Another place we need to go to," Castle commented to his fiancée.

"So that takes out California for our honeymoon," Beckett said with a smile as she tossed her hair over her shoulders. "I almost thought you were going to have us go around the state."

"In two weeks? Or however long we go," Castle said. "No, that's a full summer vacation, and I'd want the girls to go with us."

"Who are the girls?" Mari asked then, blushing when the others looked at her.

"Me and Alexis, we're youngest even though Alexis is a lady," Julia replied, kicking her legs that were hanging in the air.

"Oh thank you Jules, never thought I'd be called a lady," the young woman said with a smile.

"Where did you two go for your honeymoon Rebecca?" Beckett asked.

"We went to Thailand and Japan," Rebecca said. "That last one was his idea," she said with a laugh when she saw the slightly confused expressions on Castle and Beckett's face. "We agreed to Thailand, but since we were in the area… to a degree, I indulged his desire to go to Japan."

"How is it over there?" Beckett asked.

"It's nice," Castle suddenly said. "The gardens they have are amazing, and if you're into robes, they have amazing patterns," he continued, directing the comment about the robes to Julia who was listening to them.

"Why am I not surprised you've been," Beckett said, smiling. "And yes, we should go," she said quickly when he opened his mouth to speak.

"Can we?" Julia asked eagerly. She bounced up and down a little and then stopped, looking at Mari. "Can Mari come too?"

"She'd want to stay with her mom and dad," Beckett said gently. "Do you like the tacos?" she asked quickly to turn the subject away from Julia's question.

"Where are you going for your honeymoon?" David asked Castle.

"I'm surprising her," he replied.

"How will she pack?" Rebecca asked after laughing for a moment at that.

"We can do that before we come out here for the wedding," Castle said simply. "So, anyone want more?" he asked when he saw everyone had finished the two tacos he'd put onto each plate. "There are more."

"I think it was a success," Beckett said as the Fosters followed Jim to the house, Martha following them. "It was a good idea actually."

"If we ever go to San Diego, I'll try to remember to take you to the place we went to on the beach," Alexis said. She then smiled and said, "It was actually next to the dog beach."

"They have a beach just for doggies?" Julia asked, looking over at her sister as Mari did the same.

"They do, it was a lot of fun to watch them," Alexis said. "We'll go there too for a little if Dad and your mom will let us."

"But we don't have a doggie," Julia said.  
"We could still go to watch," Beckett said. "Where are you going?" she asked in surprise as Julia jumped off her chair.

"I'm still hungry," the little girl said with a sheepish grin.

"One more taco," Beckett said as Mari got down from her chair. She watched the two walk back to the house and said, "I feel like going back myself."

"I definitely do," Alexis said. "I'll be right back."

Finishing the last of his beer, Castle asked, "Another one?" since he'd seen his fiancée had done the same.

"One is enough," Beckett said. She looked down at the water and smiled a little saying, "This isn't the right spot."

Looking at her in confusion for a moment, Castle then realized what she meant and said, "No, but we'll find it," as he reached over to her and took her hand. When she slipped it out of his grasp he glanced at her, a little hurt at that.

"Sorry, you've still got sauce on your fingers," Beckett said apologetically.

"Oh, sorry, I was hungry, and apparently my fingers were too," Castle said, drying them off. He was going to ask his fiancée something, but the others started coming back then, so he decided to ask her when they were alone, and watched as Julia came over with three tacos, one for each of them.

After they'd finished, Beckett cleaned their daughter's mouth to her giggle before kissing her on the lips and standing up, taking the plate. "We'll-" she began to say as Castle stood with her, taking the plates she held.

"Actually we'll take over cleaning up," Rebecca said.

"You're our guests," Beckett said as David got his daughter's plate.

"Not much in the way of clean up," her friend said with a smile. "Anything we need to get?"

"There's a bowl of cherries on the counter you probably saw," Castle said. When David and Rebecca had gone up to the house he said, "Anyone want to take a walk down the beach?"

"I do," Beckett said quickly.

"Can I go?" Julia asked, hurrying to take her mother's hand.

"Anyone else?" Castle asked the others. When they shook their heads; Mari running up to the house to join her parents; he said, "Okay, then we'll be back."

Watching them go, Martha said, "Did you both decline for the same reason I did?" When Jim and Alexis both nodded she smiled saying, "August can't come fast enough for those three."

Walking though the foaming waves that washed up and drew back, Julia kicked at the water before her mother told her to stop. She then went back to Beckett, taking her hand before she glanced up at her and Castle. She smiled when she saw his arm was around her mother's waist and said, "Can we walk tomorrow too?"

"I'm guessing you're enjoying yourself," Castle commented. When the little girl nodded he said, "Me too, so I know what you mean."

"You know you should look out for shells sweetie," Beckett said as she saw one rolling back into the water after they'd been quiet.

"Oh! I got an idea! You know the wood in my room? Can I find big shells and put them on it?" Julia asked eagerly.

"If you find them I don't see why not," Castle said. He wasn't surprised when Julia let go of her mother and hurried to where the shells were saying, "She'll want to keep coming back."

"I know, I think we turned her into a beach kid," Beckett said with a smile. "I'm not complaining, I'm just saying."

"Yeah, Alexis was too at this age," Castle commented, pulling her a little closer to him. "We'll have to come back."

Shaking her head, Beckett said. "I'll have to watch you love, you can spoil our daughter so easily if I don't hold you back." She was a little startled when he made her stop, standing in front of her. When he pulled her against him she glanced at Julia before she was growing tense as her fiancé whispered into her ear. "You… okay," she started to say before giving in. He had gone back to the comment about them coming back, and had promised her to bring just her so they were alone as they'd been a couple days before.

Castle was a little surprised at her instant agreement, but then almost started to smirk when she pushed him playfully into the water. "Come on, I've never seen you agree that fast… well, yes I have but you know why that is already," he teased her.

Shaking her head, Beckett was going to walk by him when he grabbed her hand, pulling her into the water so they were knee deep. "You're lucky you kept your trunks on," she said, laughing as he pulled her back into his arms. "Easy though," she warned him as he was looking at her seriously.

"I know, but I was only going to do this…" Castle replied before he kissed her very simply. He was about to pull away when Julia suddenly jumped against them, wrapping her arms around them tightly. "Hey, you're not jealous are you?" he asked her jokingly.

"No, why am I?" Julia asked, peering up at them.

"I think he's worried he keeps me away from you too much," Beckett said, smiling at her fiancé.

"Oh, no he doesn't, if you are in love then you have to be alone sometimes, that way you can kiss and nobody sees," Julia said in a matter of fact tone.

"She explains it so well," Castle said, laughing when Beckett leaned against him, holding back her laughter. When she raised her head, he kissed her tenderly, but quickly, and said, "I think we should head back though, getting dark."

"Fireworks?" Julia asked.

"Not yet, it's not night yet, but we can play badminton again, since the birdie is supposed to glow in the dark," Beckett pointed out as they walked up to the sand.

"Mommy, Castle, look!" Julia cried, running ahead of them a little. "For my room!" she cried, showing them the large shell she'd managed to get before the wave took it back into the sea.

"That's pretty nice," Castle said, taking the whelk and turning it over. "Pretty colors and the white matches your furniture. You like white right?"

"It's pretty with blue, like a sky," Julia said, watching as Beckett took the shell. "Like your room is on top."

"That's why I like it too," Beckett said with a smile. "Keep watching the water, maybe you'll find another."

When they'd reached the others sitting around the fire, Julia went to Mari first to show her her find as Castle and Beckett brought out the items needed to make s'mores. After building up the fire, everyone roasted a marshmallow over it, though the adults were watching as Julia was pointing to the stars that were just beginning to show with the sun having gone down.

"And there are lots of stars but we can't see them 'cause they're far away," the little girl was saying as the adults were cleaning up again. "Some of them we can see might not be there anymore too, they're ghosts!"

"Why?" Mari asked, her eyes wide.

"'Cause it takes so long for the light to come they might go into a nova," Julia said. "Or supernova or something else. They do that when they can't burn anymore."

"How does she know that?" Rebecca asked Castle and Beckett.

"We let her watch the show _Cosmos_ ," Beckett replied. "And she took to it, if you couldn't guess already."

"So it's good?" David asked.

"And educational. Judging by the way Mari is reacting, you might want to show it to her too," Castle commented, nodding to the little girls who had gone to the very edge of the water and were looking up at the sky, Julia pointing.

"I think now is a good time," Beckett said with a smile.

"We've got time luckily," Castle replied, picking up the case he'd brought out. "Julia," he called. "Remember we brought this?"

"Ooh, we can look at the stars," Julia said excitedly to her friend. "I've never seen them closer have you?"

"No, but I want to see, can I? Please?" Mari asked shyly.

"She can," Beckett said as Julia turned to them. "But we're letting you look first sweetie, since you've been patient about looking through that."

Looking at her friend, the little girl bit her lip and then said, "Mari should look 'cause she's my guest. Right?"

"That's very nice of you to do sweetheart," Castle said, finishing getting the telescope set on its tripod. "I have to look through this, just to make sure it's focused," he said, looking through the eyepiece. "Okay, go ahead Mari," he told the little girl as he saw Rebecca and David walking down to them.

"I won't take a long time," Mari told Julia, squeezing her hand in thanks before looking through the eyepiece. "They're close!" she gasped.

"Look at the moon," Julia said quickly, since it was to their left. She smiled as her friend exclaimed over what she could see of it, and looked up at her mother and Castle.

"You can look," Mari said after she turned the telescope back to look at the stars again. "Thank you."

Stepping up to it, Julia looked through the eyepiece, and she sucked in a deep breath as she saw how much closer the stars were.

"Sweetie?" Beckett asked, touching her shoulder.

"It's awesome," Julia breathed out before turning to the moon. She could see some of the bright patches on the surface, and turned slowly back, studying the different sizes of the stars. She didn't want to, but she finally pulled away and said, "Alexis, look through too! Everyone can look."

Castle took Julia's hand once the little girl was standing with him and Beckett and said, "Pretty nice isn't it?"

"Yeah, I wish we could see them right up close like on the show," Julia sighed. She then giggled and said, "I wish we had a ship of the imagination too."

"What's that?" Mari asked, turning from her mother looking through the telescope.

"It's on the show… Mommy, Castle, can we watch the show with Mari?" Julia started to say before she remembered what she was going to ask earlier.

"It depends on her parents, what they say," Beckett said.

"Go ahead, I know you wouldn't show Julia anything we wouldn't show Mari," Rebecca commented as she and David went back to their seats. "Plus I know she would enjoy it."

"If we have time tonight, you two will probably be tired once the fireworks-" Beckett started to say as the two little girls turned to her at the same time. She was cut off when an explosion in the distance went off, muffled, and an explosion in the sky burst in front of the stars, making Julia and Mari cry out in fear. She took her daughter with her to her chair and was about to cover her ears when the little girl went to Castle who was sitting next to her so he did it instead.

"You know," Castle said, opening his right hand a little to speak into her ear. "The explosions aren't a bad thing, they just have to shoot the fireworks-" he paused when there was a bright green burst of color. "They shoot them into the sky so everyone can see them, and the second explosion is because they have to do that so we can see the color."

Julia was quiet as the next firework went off and then said, "Lemme try to hear."

Kissing her temple, Castle glanced at his fiancée as she held their daughter's hand when the next muffled explosion went off. They both held her steady when Julia jumped as that firework was a large, red one, and cursed their luck. But she only covered her ears for a moment before she was giggling wildly at the smiley face that the next firework was. "Okay?" he asked.

"Yeah," Julia said, smiling back at her mother and Castle. She looked over at Mari, frowning a little to see her on her father's lap, covering her ears. She leaned back against Castle, flinching at the next explosion as she covered her ears herself. But she didn't feel scared and she smiled, guessing she was being a grown up then. That thought made her frown again, and she hurried over to her mother when there was a break in between fireworks.

"Are you okay sweetie?" Beckett asked worriedly as Julia hugged her tightly around the neck, snuggling against her closely.

Nodding, Julia turned around when there were two explosions that time, and smiled at the red and green fireworks in the air. She glanced at Castle, and smiled at him shyly before he reached over, squeezing her hand and holding it the rest of the show as she held his in between covering her ears herself again.

The grand finale set off a short scream from Mari, but when Castle and Beckett checked on their daughter they were relieved to see that she looked to be okay. As the last of the fireworks faded, leaving only smoke behind, they got up to say goodnight to Rebecca and David before they went to their daughter.

"We'll be by for breakfast," Rebecca was telling Mari. "So listen to Kate and Rick and please try to get some sleep tonight."

"I will," Mari said, hugging her parents tightly. She waved as they walked down the beach to their house next door, and then turned to Julia who came over to her. "I'm scared, I never slept over before."

"This is your first?" Martha asked as they made their way up to the house. When the little girl nodded she said, "You don't need to be scared darling, you'll be with Julia and you two will have fun watching that show."

"She's right," Beckett said, smiling at the two girls. "Which we'll watch now okay?"

"Kay," Julia said, taking her friend's hand and squeezing it gently. She took Mari to the family room and said, "I sleep over at my friend's house back home."

"Is it fun?" Mari asked.

"Yeah, 'cause we play games and then in the morning we have breakfast together," Julia said. "I just wish we could play games."

"Next time she stays over we'll try to do that," Beckett said, coming into the room then with two small glasses of milk. "Are you two thirsty?" she asked. When they both nodded she gave them the cups, watching them take a sip before she sat and said, "How did you like the fireworks?"

"They were pretty," Julia said before she frowned slightly. "I wish I could have taken pictures."

"We'll try to remember to do that next year," Beckett assured her, smoothing her hair gently. "Sweetie, you're sure you were okay? You seemed like you got a little scared when you came to me."

"I… I wasn't and I thought that makes me grown up, but I don't want to grow up," Julia said softly.

"Don't worry," Castle said, coming inside as his mother, Alexis and Jim followed him. "You've got a long time before you get that old. But for now, should we start?"

"Yes! Oh Mari, I can't wait for you to see," Julia said happily then as Beckett helped her up onto the couch and then helped her friend up. "There's a calendar, and lots of stars and a big explosion that started the stars. And you know what?"

"What?" Mari asked as she smiled; which everyone else was doing as well.

"The same things in stars are in us," Julia said in awe. "We're like stars."

"She's right," Alexis said as Mari was looking at all the adults in what looked to be shock. "We're made of the same things as stars, so we kind of are like them."

Julia giggled when Mari looked at her hands and said, "Watch and you'll see." She kept looking back and forth between the screen and her friend to see her reactions to what was shown during the episode. "What did you think?" she asked with bated breath.

"That was cool," Mari said. "But why are we so late?"

"Because it takes a very long time for the universe to be created," Castle said as Beckett got the two girls off the couch. "And for us to evolve too."

"For now, say goodnight to everyone because you two need to go to bed now," Beckett told them.

"Night Alexis," Julia said, hurrying over to her and hugging her tightly. "I can't wait for tomorrow when we swim more."

"I can't wait to see where we swim," Alexis told her with a smile. "Night Jules, you too Mari."

Going to Martha next, Julia wrapped her arms around her neck telling her, "I hope you'll come swimming with us tomorrow."

"We'll see darling, sweet dreams," Martha told her, kissing her cheek. "And goodnight to you Mari."

The little girl nodded, standing behind her friend shyly as she was saying goodnight to her grandfather.

"I'll swim again Julia, you took to that pretty quickly," Jim was telling his granddaughter as he hugged her tightly to him.

"That's because it's fun," Julia giggled at that. "Night Grandpapa, I love you."  
"I love you too honey, night," Jim said. "Goodnight Mari."

Waving, Mari let Julia take her hand and she followed her upstairs as Castle led the way. She watched him stand just outside the doorway to the room, but her attention was quickly taken when she saw the room as Beckett turned on the light. "This is your room?"

"Do you like it? My mommy and Castle made it just for me," Julia said, pleased when she saw the surprise on Mari's face.

"It's pretty," the little girl replied, smiling.

"Let's get you both into your pajamas," Beckett said, getting Julia's from the dresser drawer and Mari's from the overnight bag her parents had brought with them. "Sweetie, think you can change yourself tonight?"

"Yeah," Julia said quickly, knowing her mother had to help Mari. She felt a certain sense of pride getting into her horse pajama shirt and dark blue pajama pants herself, and watched Beckett slip Mari's green heart patterned nightgown over her head. She ran to the door before her mother could say anything, and peering around the doorway said, "You can come in now Castle."

"Thank you, but you need to brush your teeth," he said, knowing she had run to him before Beckett could remind her.

"Can you help us?" Julia asked.

"We'll both help," Beckett said when her fiancé looked to her questioningly.

With Castle and Beckett's help, the girls were soon in Julia's bed, the latter tucking their daughter and her friend in before she stepped back for him.

"Okay, goodnight Mari, hope you sleep alright here, you should, I think it's a pretty nice bed," Castle said.

"Thank you," Mari said with a smile.

"I love you Julia, goodnight," Castle murmured to the little girl, sharing a kiss with her.

Nodding, Julia watched as her mother walked over to them again and said, "I love you Mommy."

"I love you too sweetie," Beckett said, squeezing her shoulder. "Night Mari, sleep tight okay?" At the little girl's nod she then went to her daughter and shared a kiss with her saying, "And you too, please sleep it's very late."

Nodding, Julia watched as her mother and Castle went to the doorway, watching them, and she was soon asleep, tired from everything she'd done that day, but already dreaming about the pool and jumping into the water with her family and friend.

"I almost thought they were going to be hyper," Castle commented as they went down the stairs together. "Oh, hey Alexis, going to bed?" he asked as his daughter came up to them from the kitchen.

"I might read for a little, I need to see," the young woman said. "Night."

"Night Alexis, they might wake you up," Beckett commented with a smile.

"It's why I might get some sleep now, Julia may be excited about swimming again," Alexis replied. She gave her dad a quick one armed hug before heading up to her room, hearing him start to speak before she walked down the hall.

"Kate, there's something I want to do," Castle said as they looked down at the kitchen, seeing their parents talking over cups of coffee. "Outside."

"Okay," Beckett said, wondering if he wanted to get the telescope again. But he took her hand and walked out the door, making her a little more curious.

Not stopping until he was at the point where the sand became wetter, Castle turned to his fiancée before making her stand across from him, their sides to the house. "Here?" he asked before he glanced back at the home. "No, too far over," he answered before she could. He then took a few steps back and studied her before looking at the house again.

"Aren't you supposed to be taking me with you?" Beckett asked with a smile as he went past her. Shaking her head as he took a step to the side, she went to him and took his hand. "Here," she said, leading him to the point right at the transition in the consistency of the sand and directly in front of the door to the house.

"Perfect," Castle said, looking with her. "That's going to be one long aisle though."

"I could probably walk through the grass alright, but at the sand I'd need some kind of cover," Beckett let him know. "So… we're really going to do this."

"Yeah, are you having any… second thoughts about that?" Castle asked, turning to her then and pulling her to him.

"No, no I'm ready for this, it's just, it feels surreal," Beckett said. "Even though we've been planning it, I feel like I'm dreaming."

Leaning down to kiss her, Castle took her lips firmly, but not with any kind of urgency before he was pulling back telling her, "I think I can reassure you." And with that he hooked his arm around her waist, picking her up and running into the waves as she cried out his name before they splashed into the water. He stumbled, and they were suddenly underneath the waves for a brief second before he was resurfacing with her.

"Oh my god, Castle you're lucky I still have my bikini on," Beckett said, splashing him as they stood, just over waist deep in the water.

"Makes things feel real," Castle commented, watching her, unable to help staring at her body, clearly defined underneath her wet sundress clinging to her. He met her eye then, and it was as if they were pushed, nearly falling into each other as they were grabbing for one another, kissing deeply as he pulled her flush against his body.

Moaning slightly into his mouth, Beckett took his tongue as he slipped it past her parting lips, feeling him against her, shuddering so hard that she ended up breaking them apart. "Sorry," she whispered against his lips. "What is it?" she asked as he seemed to be frozen against her.

"I can't…" Castle started to say. He was tempted; sorely tempted; to take her right there in the water, not caring the waves would be moving them around, pushing them into the shore. Instead, he reached down and cupped her breast with his hand, watching her, waiting for her to tell him no. But what she did in response nearly had him collapsing in shock, her hand taking his off her chest, sliding it under the water, to the apex of her legs. "Love," he breathed harshly, his fingers moving of their own accord, staring at her to see her reaction.

Her nails digging into Castle's shoulders, Beckett arched against him, though there wasn't much she could do to feel him further; she was still dressed. Finally she came back to herself and grabbed his hand saying, "We need to go."

"Yeah," Castle said absently before he took her hand and led her up to the beach. He couldn't help himself, stopping and kissing her deeply as she wrapped her arms around him tightly in response. He groaned when she was pressing close to him during that, and when they finally parted to breathe he said, "These clothes need to come off."

Nodding, Beckett let him lead the way to the house, and they took off at a run for the stairs that were close. She was just able to bite back her cry of surprise when her dad and his mom appeared in front of them, making her and Castle slide to a stop.

The four stared at each other for a while before Castle spoke saying, "Night," then ran past them, his fiancée's hand still firmly in his as she went with him.

"Well," Jim said when they heard the sound of the door closing on the right side of the house. "I suppose they were doing more than just choosing where they'll stand during the ceremony," going over to the kitchen to get a towel for the water the two had dripped onto the floor.

"Of course, but you know, watching them…" Martha started to say as Jim was drying off the floor. "Did you ever worry about her?"

"Constantly," Jim replied simply. "He would search too?"

"Excessively," Martha said before she sighed. "It was painful to watch, but there wasn't much I could do for him except set him up once in a while and wonder if that woman would be the one he was looking for. He had to find her on his own."

"And so did she," Jim said. "Let's hope we get to the wedding without any difficulties."

"I agree, they deserve a smooth road right now," Martha commented as she went up the stairs. "Goodnight Jim."

"Night Martha," he replied, glancing towards Castle and his daughter's room, smiling at thinking of it in that way. He went to his room, thinking about what Martha had said, hoping in his mind she would be right and they'd be back the next month, for a wedding.

* * *

"Should I be apologizing for dunking you under the water?" Castle commented, looking up at the ceiling that was flickering in the light from the fireplace.

"You didn't dunk me, more like dragged me into it," Beckett said, a wide smile on her face. "I didn't know you could carry me like that."

"I didn't know either," Castle said, laughing under his breath as he remembered doing that. "You…" he started to say before he saw his fiancée out of the corner of his eye, and he sat up in a rush.

"You've seen me like this before Rick," Beckett said, walking around the bed to get on it at her side. She could feel his stare, seeming to shoot straight through her light blue negligee; the same blue of her aquamarine and sash for her wedding dress. "I'm actually giving this to you incredibly early."

"You bought it with your dress?" Castle asked, almost having to drag his eye physically up to her face, a little preoccupied with her breasts. "It's… kind of loose…" he said, his head drooping down again.

"Up here," Beckett said, snapping her fingers and making him tilt his head back up. "And no, I was planning on wearing it for our wedding night. But no."

"No?" Castle asked, looking back up at her again.

"No, nothing to waste time before we consummate the marriage," Beckett teased him, wondering if he even caught that as he was staring at her entire body that time, not just her chest.

"So… thank you," Castle said, looking back up to her again. He leaned over to her, kissing her deeply as she reached up, wrapping her arms around his neck tightly. He was a little surprised when she was suddenly plunging her tongue into his mouth, and he groaned as he hurried to fight her, that kiss becoming heavy as they were tilting their heads back and forth in their slight fight, pulling away carefully to breathe. "Can I continue what I started on the beach?" he asked her, leaning his forehead against hers.

Shaking her head, Beckett leaned over to him and whispered into his ear, smiling as his hands on her back were suddenly gripping her tightly. "What? We've done that before," she teased him.

"We have," Castle said, studying her. "But you know you could have said that a lot more dirtily; what you want to do isn't really that sedate."

"And having sex of any kind is?" Beckett asked, feeling her cheeks still flush deeply though.

"Are you holding back?" Castle asked; that having always been a fear of his since they'd become lovers a little abruptly, still concerned about the so called "wall" she'd described to him.

"No, no I'm not," Beckett said quickly to reassure him. She kissed him tenderly and said, "I just don't want it to become a porn movie between us."

"Okay," Castle said, pushing his desire to make a smart ass comment about them being filmed out of his mind. "You know when I started talking like that, it was with the idea we'd only do it every so often. You use it too much, it gets repetitive. But with us only using it to fuck as you requested the other night…" he said, trailing off as he slid his hand down her side to her shiver. "Plus, I want you to be different from the way you are when we don't have that door locked and closed," he told her, nodding to it. "When it's just us Kate, no one to hear you but me. So talk like that, but only for me."

Studying her fiancé closely, Beckett cupped his face in her hands before she leaned over, kissing him. The kiss was deep, but slow and she dragged her tongue along his rapidly before she moved away from him. "You felt that right?" she asked.

A little startled since he knew she was talking about the way her tongue had been moving, Castle nodded, wondering where she was going to go with that.

Smiling, Beckett brushed her lips against his and murmured, "Good, I want your tongue on my pussy just like that."

"Oh god love, say that again," Castle breathed, holding onto her tightly.

"Uh-uh, a taste is all you get," Beckett replied, making his hand slide up underneath her negligee. "So you'll keep wanting more."

"I don't think I'll stop wanting more," Castle said huskily, staring at her intently before he was reaching for the lingerie covering her body, almost tearing it off of her before he was kissing her, laying her down on the bed hard at the same time. "I hope this is how you want it, I don't know if I can slow down Kate," he warned her when they had stopped. She merely kissed him back, so he pulled away, turning to go between her legs as she turned onto her side the same time he did.

Letting out a little gasp that had a moan to it, Beckett looked down, watching as Castle's fingers slid down her mound, finding her clit. He rubbed it slowly, and she almost forgot what she had wanted to do to him before his mouth descended to join his fingers. She arched her neck back, and saw his arousal in front of her, making her try to recover and take him in her mouth. It was a struggle, as it was insanely easy to just let him work on her, taking everything for herself. But she finally recovered, and she took him in her hand, leading him past her lips.

Castle groaned against his fiancée's sex, his tongue by then past her slick folds, and he wasn't all that surprised to feel her hips thrust toward him in reaction, making him respond the same way in turn. He tried to calm down, and once he felt he had, he began to move again, flicking his appendage up and down in her, somehow meeting the bobbing motion of her mouth around him without realizing it at first. But eventually he did notice it, and he focused all his attention on her, to try and distract himself as he was feeling a large amount of pleasure with what she was doing to him.

The two fought wars with themselves at the same time that they didn't even know the other was doing. They wanted to try and make their oral pleasuring of one another last for as long as it could, while at the same time they wanted to make the other feel something similar to what they themselves were feeling. It made them last longer, without them knowing time passed, the room quiet except for groans and quick breaths of air before they went back to what they were doing. Eventually though, things became too intense, and Beckett was the first to break, pulling away from Castle and crying to him in warning that she was going to come. She was lucky to have a second to say that, as she lost her self control, the pleasure in her body radiating up and down her spine and to the very tips of her fingers and toes, making her pant for air as he didn't stop touching her, his mouth still working over her so deliberately that she felt exhausted when she finally came down from her high trying to take in everything from him at once.

Breathing heavily, Castle was going to move, when Beckett took him back in her mouth, and he was drawn over the edge by her, her hands and mouth both working together. His own pleasure in his orgasm was intense, and he was left shaking for a few seconds before he was able to stop, forcing himself up and onto the bed next to his fiancée, kissing her deeply. Stroking her hair when they parted, both Castle and Beckett were smiling, sharing quick, gentle kisses before they stayed apart so they could speak.

"See, that kind of language is a great little addition," Castle commented, watching her sit up. He watched in some confusion as she leaned over to his nightstand, taking his phone. "What is it?" he asked, sitting up.

"Just looking," Beckett replied simply. She remained intent on what she was doing until she suddenly smiled, and looking at her fiancé she wasn't surprised to see him looking a little startled. "What do you think?" she asked, showing him.

"I… wow, I wasn't expecting that," Castle asked, looking at the sexual position on the screen. "What if we add to this?"

"A pillow?" Beckett asked, reaching for an extra one. "Hurry," she said.

"Of course," Castle said quickly before he moved to set his phone back down. Once it was out of the way he waited for her to lie down, tucking the pillow underneath her. "You…" he started to say before she took his length in her hand, suddenly starting to stroke it. "I should say…" he started to say before he grunted hard in pleasure at her touch. He'd lost his arousal with the intensity of his climax, but since her hand was all over his groin and not just focused in one area; coupled with short caresses; he was nearly against his stomach in his desire.

"How…?" Beckett asked watching as he moved away from her then, since she'd never seen him that aroused before.

"You're touching yourself love," Castle said, before he lay in between her legs. "Don't underestimate yourself," he groaned as he slid into her with one swift, smooth thrust. He breathed out hard as she then spread her legs as far apart as she could, and looked deeply into her eyes not surprised to see the expression on her face matched with what he felt doing that. He only paused for a moment, before he started to move, and hissed as he started slowly, the sensation no less pleasurable.

"Wait, Rick, I want you to fuck me," Beckett begged him.

"I will, just let me… work up to it," Castle breathed out heavily in pleasure as she was incredibly tight and very much aroused for him again. He thanked her in his mind for unconsciously touching herself, and he moved to kiss her deeply, but quickly before he leaned down to her neck. Nibbling along her skin there, he felt her trembling against him, but she was moving with him, steady in the pace he'd set for them both, and he flicked his tongue against her skin as he inched up the speed of his thrusts.

Holding onto her fiancé tightly around the neck, Beckett was feeling him deep, but it felt a little different. She pushed the thought aside, instead just concentrating on moving with him. She moaned once when he moved harder against her, their hips starting then to smack together as the speed was enough for that to begin. She started to run her hand over the back of his head, when he suddenly pulled back and stared into her eyes. She was startled when he suddenly said, "Stop me if you don't want me to," and before she could react, he was in between her breasts, flicking his tongue slowly over her scar. She suddenly jerked up into him, and he responded by slamming into her for a few thrusts before she had to grasp him first by the hips, then by the ass to calm him down. As soon as he had, she pulled his head to her right breast, hoping he knew she didn't mind the action, but felt a little unsure about it.

Castle understood, though he couldn't explain how he did, and instead he moved back and pressed a deep kiss to the marred skin before moving up to her lips. "I adore you love, every inch of you," he whispered. The next words out of his mouth he murmured without even knowing that he did, telling her, "You are… my goddess, absolute perfection, my, my soul," stammering slightly on the s in soul. But it was said, and he didn't even realize immediately that he was saying it, not seeing Beckett's reaction to that since he swooped down to her breasts, taking them eagerly as her hands held onto the back of his head.

Tears were burning in her eyes, and Beckett was slightly in shock with the way Castle had spoken, so sincerely that it hadn't come from making love to her so roughly. He'd meant it, and she was shaken, wondering if there was a possibility she was any of those things in fact. But the way he was caressing her skin with his mouth, the way he was simply fucking her, she could feel like it was real. She ignored him saying that about his soul, raking her nails over the back of his head, not wanting to face that yet. She watched as he moved from her other breast, dragging up to her lips where they kissed, feeling how hard he was pressing his lips against her before she parted hers to his eager tongue. That whole time she could still feel him moving in her, rough and steady, sometimes moving, changing the angle of his hips so the friction between their bodies was a little different. All of that was making her head spin, so much so that when Castle moved them around, she was almost still laying on the bed in her mind.

A little startled when Beckett didn't move after he had her on her knees above him, Castle grabbed the small of her back before she was wrapping her arms around him, kissing him roughly. He stroked her hair as they were turning their heads back and forth, that kiss a lot more intense than any they'd shared so far that night. When breathing became a dire necessity and they were apart, he made her lean back a little, reaching down to her clit. His fingers slid around her swollen nub, and he was shuddering in response to that as she watched him, looking down her body though he knew she wouldn't be able to see much. He then looked up at her, and grabbed her hips as she stopped going in an up and down motion on him, instead rocking her hips against him. He helped her move, breathing roughly, watching her then and feeling his heartbeat race as he didn't think he'd ever seen anything as erotic as she was in that moment. It was then he remembered what he'd told her, and though unsure what she'd thought, he wouldn't take any of it back, she was everything to him. He leaned up and kissed her then before he rolled them around so she was on her back again, and he kissed her again hard, feeling his lips throbbing as he was trying to convey to her how he felt that way.

Feeling that in his kiss, Beckett held onto her fiancé tightly as she wrapped her legs around him. She slid her left leg high up his side, the other a little lower on his back, and since she was back on top of that pillow they'd started out using, the angle was deep, and she was moaning into his mouth, continuing as he pulled away from her. She stroked the back of his head, sliding her nails over his neck and to his back. She went breathless for a brief moment as her fingertips were able to discern the movement of his muscles as he was still taking her roughly. She leaned her neck back for him as he was sucking at her collarbone, wanting him to be able to continue, and she whispered his name, making him look up at her at her tone. "I love… you," she said, biting her lower lip at the tone she'd used that time as well.

"I love you, Kate, I adore you," Castle said, by then pressing his forehead against hers. "Love you're… amazing, so good around my cock," he groaned to her, hoping that wasn't too crass right after her telling him she loved him. But judging by the way her nails dug into his back, he guessed it wasn't for her, and then suddenly realized that she was losing her rhythm with him, and he moved a little harder against her, wanting to feel her as she broke.

It was shortly after Castle's speeding up his thrusts that Beckett did as he'd been expecting, and she was writhing against her fiancé's body as her orgasm was almost too much for her to be able to control herself. She cried out his name, unable to hold back on that and not really caring that she did before she felt him joining her a second later. She held him tightly to her, feeling the way he was shaking against her as he tried to continue to thrust as he'd been before. But eventually they were moving in such a haphazard way that she was shocked he wasn't slipping out of her. Finally though, she started to slow down her movements, but then gasped, clutching her fiancé as he thrust hard into her a few more times before he moved once slowly, and then stopped, resting on his arms above her. She didn't say anything, only smiled as she kissed the side of his head, not surprised when he turned to kiss her back, a little deeper that time. When they'd finally parted, she watched him get up before she looked up at the ceiling again, biting her lower lip.

"Okay?" Castle asked as he got onto the bed and she got off it.

"We should get dressed," Beckett told him quickly, smiling reassuringly at him. She threw on her pajamas, and got Castle back on the bed quickly, kissing him goodnight before pressing against his side as he fell asleep. When she heard his breathing grow deep and even, she pulled away and slowly disentangled herself from his hold to go out to the stairs. She didn't stop as she went out the door, walking to the gazebo where she sat on her knees, looking down at the waves as she rested her chin on her arms.

Closing her eyes tightly, Beckett wondered when the last shred of her rigid control of her emotions had fled her. She wanted to say it had been when she'd stepped out of the cabin to find her mother's murderer dead, but knew that it had been with Castle, making love with him and hearing him calling him her soul. She had been serious telling him she'd never believed in soul mates. But there was something about him that she knew was a part of her, and she could guess the same went for him. She looked down at the beach, but her gaze went to her ring, the diamonds standing out though there wasn't any kind of light on them. She turned around to sit and she looked around her, remembering her fiancé proposing to her in that same spot, the memory making her smile.

She knew then too that she had to let go of that moment when she had found out her mother was dead. Beckett realized that if her mother were there with her, she'd be pushing her to let go of who she had become since then because of that moment. She looked up then and saw her fiancé standing at the entrance to the gazebo, watching her with a concerned expression on his face. She stood and went to him, wrapping her arms around him as tightly as she could, feeling the warmth of his body against her. Her mother was there at that point; something she would never admit to Castle as he kissed her temple and murmured that he loved her. She was there telling her to let go and go to her future, and she buried her face into her fiancé's neck, whispering his name as she felt that last, invisible thread to her past pain sever, leaving her adrift in the fact she knew nothing about what was to come, what she was going to do, only knowing that with Castle, she had a safe haven with him wherever life would lead them.

It was at that moment that Julia stepped out to see her mother and Castle standing in the gazebo before moving to sit down together. She then ran out to them saying softly, "Mommy are you kay?"

"Sweetie, why are you up?" Beckett asked worriedly when they heard her bare feet running to them.

"I heard you Mommy, why did you come here?" Julia asked, wrapping her arms around Beckett's neck as she picked her up.

"I wasn't tired and decided to listen to the waves a little louder, to see if it would put me to sleep," Beckett murmured, kissing the side of her head.

Touching her shoulder, Castle wrapped his arm around her saying, "It is pretty soothing."

"What does that mean?" Julia asked, yawning.

"It calms you down," Beckett said, smiling at their daughter. She then moved to cradle her saying, "We love you sweetie, you know that right?"

Blushing deeply as she glanced at Castle and could see he agreed, Julia whispered, "I know. But why are you crying Mommy?"

"I-" Beckett said, touching her cheeks which were suddenly damp. "No, I'm okay," she assured Castle as he moved to brush her tears away. "Just happy, to be here with you and your daddy," she told Julia.

"Me too," the little girl said before yawning sleepily.

"I think you should head back to bed," Castle commented, not surprised when Beckett gave her silent agreement by standing up. He hurried to follow her, and outside the slightly open door of Julia's room, he leaned over, sharing a kiss with her before watching his fiancée go inside to tuck their daughter back in. As soon as she was back out, he took her hand and led her over to their room, closing the door before he was holding her tightly to him. "What is it love?" he whispered to her.

"It's the realization that I have nothing to look back on, to weigh on me," Beckett whispered to him. "Bracken is dead, and we're still here, to be there for our little girl."

"It's been a long time in coming," Castle stated, not surprised when she nodded in confirmation. "So do you look forward to that, or does it make you hesitant?"

"As much as I'm looking forward to our wedding, I look to the future as anyone else does; take everything day by day, and know that whatever happens, I have someone I love to help me in any way he can," Beckett said, whispering at the end of that.

Swallowing roughly, Castle leaned down to kiss her before he pulled back saying, "Then you know how I feel. And Kate, what I said I meant." As she looked up at him he kissed her lips softly saying, "You are my goddess," then kissing them the same way again, "Absolute perfection," before telling her, "And my soul," kissing her deeply as he wrapped his arms tightly around her.

Beckett was grasping onto her fiancé hard as that kiss seemed to go on for a very long time, though they were parting for quick gasps of air. But finally when they stopped she whispered, "I know, I can feel it when you touch me, when you kiss me just like that. Castle I… I just don't know."

"There's no need to tell me the same," he interrupted her quickly with. "Though if you want to call me a god to your goddess, feel free to." He smiled when he got a soft laugh out of her at that, able to see her rolling her eyes though she was pressed against his chest. "But I can feel your love for me in the way you are with me. And that's all I need." He kissed her again, but that time it was far more tender and gentle, and he then led her to the bed once they had parted. Lying down behind her, holding her close to him he murmured, "We're close now."

"I know," Beckett murmured. "And I'm hoping time goes fast, it's been going slowly enough already." She then smiled and looked back at him asking, "So you want you marry me?"

"It's why I asked," Castle commented simply, brushing some of her hair off her cheek. "Got down on one knee and everything. I mean it when I say I love you, and I find myself not seeing that band I'll be sporting after we're married as a ball and chain. It's a chance for me to have what I've been searching for my whole life."

"I thought that was why you had gotten married twice; not just because you wanted to be married for marriage's sake," Beckett whispered. She smiled a little and said, "I'm surprised it's me you want this with."

"You've given me a lot Kate," Castle said simply. "And you'll be giving me a lot more than my money could never get me; our family."

Beckett reached back to him, and shared a gentle, tender kiss with him before they parted and she caressed his cheek. She wanted to tell him she loved him, but knew it was unnecessary, knowing as she looked at him in the dim light of the room that he wanted to tell her the same. She kissed him a little more roughly then, but when they parted, they didn't really have much energy to do anything else but lay back down, pressed close together. Smiling she said, "Goodnight Rick."

"Night Kate," Castle murmured, his arm wrapped around her waist. He wasn't surprised a short time later to feel her relax in his hold, listening to her breathing even out and he knew she was sleeping. He was surprised at the change he'd been able to notice in her, and it was almost as if he too could feel her last tie to her past leaving her. He only hoped, as he settled down and closed his eyes to join her in sated sleep, that he could give her and Julia the future they deserved to have. His resolve on doing that settled down his thoughts in a way he couldn't explain, and he soon nodded off, his breath joining hers and filling their room as the waves continued to crash on the beach below.

Their sleep that night was deep, but both Beckett and Castle could feel the change that was coming, it was a vague, elusive sensation, something they couldn't exactly name. Though with the election the very next week; only three days away since by then it was early the morning of the fifth; they were bracing themselves for what would happen to them, to their partnership. There was no concern for their relationship, that was as strong as it had ever been; even after their fight about going to the cabin; and they knew as long as they had each other, they would both have the strength to keep going, whatever came to them, whatever happened next.


End file.
